BJP minister embarrasses party, says I am yet to understand GST

Bhopal: In an embarrassment to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a minister in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan cabinet has created a flutter by conceding in public that he hardly understood the Goods and Services Tax (GST), introduced in the country on July one this year.

State food and civil supplies minister Om Prakash Dhruv, ironically, made the confession while he was addressing a gathering in Umariya in MP on November eight to create awareness among them about the benefits of twin economic reforms, note ban and GST, undertaken by the Centre recently. “I think I should not speak on the GST because I myself do not understand about it. Even the charted accountants and traders do not understand about it. GST is the most misunderstood subject. But, once you understand it, you will start liking it”, he said evoking peel of laughter from the gathering.

Mr Dhruv whose tongue-in-cheek remarks had earlier caused embarrassment to the state BJP government, however assured the gathering that the two reform measures would make the economy robust by weeding out corruptions in the system.

Sources said the BJP leadership here has taken serious note of it and was mulling a proposal to conduct a training session for the ministers.