Rajya Sabha returns Manipur GST bill to Lok Sabha

The Rajya Sabha on December 2 returned to the Lok Sabha the Manipur GST Bill, which seeks to replace an Ordinance and bring the northeastern state under the nationwide GST 2.0 reforms framework. 

The Lok Sabha had passed the bill a day earlier. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, replying to the debate in the Upper House, said the legislation would provide long-denied benefits to the people and businesses of Manipur and strengthen revenue mobilisation in the conflict-hit state.

Sitharaman accused the Opposition of shedding “crocodile tears” over Manipur while avoiding participation in Parliament discussions concerning the state’s development. She said the Opposition had similarly skipped a debate on Manipur’s budget and had again stayed away during the GST bill discussion. “Every time about Manipur they will raise these issues… total crocodile tears,” she remarked, adding that the bill would help remove ambiguities and extend to Manipur reforms that the rest of the country has already benefited from.

The Finance Minister said the GST 2.0 reforms include mechanisms like track-and-trace systems and rationalisation of tax slabs, noting that the 28 per cent slab had been abolished and several items shifted to the 18 per cent category. She said the reforms would ease compliance, enhance transparency and boost revenue for the Manipur government, especially after a prolonged phase without an elected administration.

During the discussion, BJD MP Sulata Deo urged that President’s Rule in Manipur be lifted and elections held at the earliest. Referring to global comparisons, she noted that India earlier had the world’s highest GST rate at 28 per cent, surpassing even Argentina.

YSRCP MP Ayodhya Rami Reddy Alla supported the bill, highlighting that reduced compliance burdens and greater transparency would help Manipur focus on sustainable development and align with national economic progress. Citing official data, he said violent incidents in Manipur had fallen sharply over the past decade—from 740 in 2008 to 97 in 2020—though the trend reversed in 2023, with around 260 deaths recorded by April 2025. He stressed that long-term peace depended on addressing inequalities between the hill and valley regions and between majoritarian and tribal communities.

Nominated member Harsh Vardhan Shringla also backed the legislation, saying a stable and predictable GST regime would attract investment, improve state revenues and support Manipur’s economic recovery at a time when the state continues to grapple with ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities. Since May 2023, over 260 people have been killed and thousands displaced due to the ongoing conflict.

The bill will now return to the Lok Sabha for final procedural approval before it becomes an Act.