L’Oreal India Distributor Found Guilty of Not Passing GST Rate-Cut Benefits to Consumers

• GST Appellate Tribunal found Raj & Co. guilty of not passing GST rate reduction benefits to consumers.
• Raj & Co. was ordered to deposit Rs. 3.31 Lakhs with 18 percent interest into the Consumer Welfare Fund.
• Complaint was based on failure to pass reduced GST rate from 28 percent to 18 percent on cosmetics.
• Investigation showed Raj & Co. raised base prices instead of reducing them, leading to profiteering.
• Raj & Co. claimed lack of control over pricing due to L’Oreal’s software, but L’Oreal denied this.
• Previous orders and distributor agreement indicated Raj & Co. had discretion to adjust prices.
• GSTAT confirmed Raj & Co.’s responsibility to pass on GST benefits and rejected their defense.
• The ruling aligns with principles upheld by the Delhi High Court regarding anti-profiteering laws.

Source: a2ztaxcorp.net

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.

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