Singh claimed the regime has imposed an overwhelming financial burden on ordinary people, calling the total amount “crores of crores of rupees looted” through GST for nearly a decade. He singled out officials who benefit from foreign luxury goods—Germany’s pen, Italy’s glasses, American phones, foreign cars, helicopters and aircraft—as emblematic of unfairness, arguing the common citizen is made to carry the cost.
Saurabh Bharadwaj, another senior AAP leader, criticised the timing of the Prime Minister’s speech, saying the GST reforms were “old news” already announced earlier and suggesting the speech served more as political theatre than substantive reform. Priyanka Kakkar, AAP spokesperson, said that the GST regime has “broken the back of the common man,” contending the reforms Modi praised had yet to be implemented. She challenged the Prime Minister’s assertion that tax rates are uniform across the country, citing continued discrepancies such as the exclusion of petrol from GST, and the continued taxation of religious offerings and festivals.
Modi’s address introduced what his government calls “next-generation” GST reforms, framed as part of a broader push for self-reliance and simplification of tax burdens. He described the changes as initiating a “GST-saving festival,” adding that upcoming reforms, combined with increases in income tax exemption thresholds, would together yield savings amounting to ₹2.5 lakh crore for citizens.
Opposition parties have picked apart those claims, arguing the reforms do not go far enough in easing everyday costs. The criticism centres on items still taxed under GST, alongside what are viewed as unsatisfactory reliefs for essential sectors like healthcare and construction, and the slow pace of implementation across states.
Meanwhile, the government holds that the reforms will bring uniformity, greater compliance, and reduced cascading of taxes. In response to the “uniform tax” criticism, officials maintained that indeed further adjustments will phase in to standardise rates and reduce disparities.