GST Council Meeting: Aadhar-Based Authentication To Be Rolled Out In Phased Manner

"The problem behind GST rate rationalisation is the math around it. Its a massive exercise on so many products and services. There are new ministers in the GST Council, so perspectives change. I think we are no where near to rate rationalisation. It is a work in progress, but it is years away," Rajat Bose, partner at law firm Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas.

GST exemption on hostels outside educational institution up to Rs 20,000 per person per month will be a big concession, keeping in mind the interest of students coming from rural areas, said Ved Jain, managing partner at VJA Legal.

The defined monetary limits to appeals on GST cases is a good start, said Rajat Bose, partner at law firm Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas.

"A lot of litigation will come once GSTAT is set up. This move is good where government can limit litigations in the coming years. But revenue secretary saying the limit does not apply in policy matters, this needs to be looked at," he said.

"The waivers on penalties and interest on cases till FY20 clearly shows the intent is to resolve disputes. The key reforms were missing but it was not expected this time. We have to check the fineprint of the Council meeting," said Saurabh Agarwal, tax partner at EY India.

"The GST Council has suggested monetary limits for each level of appeal. The caveat is if there is a policy matter involved the government would still have right to appeal even if the amount is smaller than limit. If somebody is granted relief over classification issue, it can be treated as policy issue," SC Garg, former finance secretary, told NDTV Profit.