DIMAPUR, MAY 27 (MExN): The ACAUT Nagaland has called for strict implementation of the latest Nagaland Government notification against illegal collection of money and to ensure that there is no stone left unturned to implement this “landmark notification in toto.”
A press release from the ACAUT said that with the Goods and Services Tax (GST) imposed nationally since 2017 all other taxes are subsumed. It asked the Nagaland State Goods and Services Tax (SGST) Department to ensure that no act or law on taxation is in contravention with the Central GST.
It further pointed out that the imposition of royalty and tax on forest and mineral items with Transit Permit (TP) from other states by both the Department of Forest and the Department of Geology and Mining is “unlawful.” The ACAUT said that it amounts to double taxation which should be done away with immediately.
Meanwhile, it stated that the insistence of paper slip for entry of commercial vehicle with registration number at check- gates serves as the information centre for tracking and sending sms system for illegal tax collection. Instead, GST e-bill should be scanned and verified, it demanded.
Further, it said that any authorized toll/tax levied should have services and facilities provided. “For instance, the Department of Veterinary should have quarantine for animals at the border check gates for issuing of the mandatory pass,” it cited.
Any aggrieved party or individuals should now be able to send photo or video evidences anonymously in the given helpline numbers and email, it added. The ACAUT also said that CCTVs should be immediately installed in all authorized check gates.
It also called for doing away with the lessee system practiced by Municipal Councils in Nagaland.
The ACAUT further asked the Divisional Bench to uphold the May 18, 2022 Home Department notification, to make it a statutory judgment to serve as a precedent in all cases related to illegal taxation in Nagaland.
The police, it added, should be given more teeth and power by the State by legislating an act like the Maharashtra Crime Control Act and Uttra Pradesh Goondas Act to function as a deterrent.
It further stated that the findings and recommendations of the High Powered Committee headed by Justice HK Sema which were submitted in 2015 should “now be intra vires for any investigation or legal proceeding and in policy making for the whole gamut of illegal taxation in the State of Nagaland.”
Finally, the ACAUT demanded that other than deployment of normal personnel and officers, a dedicated unit, comprising of upright police personnel along with magistrates in a particular district may be tasked for overseeing the enforcement of the Home Department notification. The same should be adequately backed with ground mobile police squad for patrolling within zones in a district, it said. The ACAUT also called for placing of special police units of two or more districts under the rank of a senior SP or a DIG.
