Nitish Kumar seconds Arun Jaitley on GST push for real estate

PATNA: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today endorsed Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's remarks that he saw a "strong case" for bringing the real-estate sector under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax ( GST).

Speaking on the sidelines of his weekly public interaction programme, Kumar said Bihar was among the first states to have raised this demand at a GST Council meeting.

"We have always supported the GST and other measures that targeted black money holders. In fact, Bihar was among the first states to have raised such a demand," Kumar, flanked by deputy chief minister Sushil Modi, told reporters.

Sushil Modi is a member of a technical committee on the GST.

At a programme at Harvard University two days ago, Jaitley had said that real estate was one sector that has witnessed maximum tax evasion and cash generation.

"The one sector in India where maximum amount of tax evasion and cash generation takes place is real estate which is still outside the GST. Some of the states have been pressing for it. I personally believe that there is a strong case to bring real estate into the GST," Jaitley had said while delivering a lecture at the university.