The CBDT, as a measure to reduce litigation, revised the monetary limits for filing appeals by the Department before Income Tax Appellate Tribunals, High Courts and Supreme Court. Accordingly, appeals would henceforth be filed in the ITAT only if the tax effect exceeded Rs.2,00,000, in the high court only if the tax effect exceeded Rs.4,00,000 and in the Supreme Court only if the tax effect exceeded Rs.10,00,000. However, it clarified that these monetary limits would not apply to writ matters.
After much bickering with states, the finance ministry today reduced the central sales tax (CST) rate on inter-state sales from 3 per cent to 2 per cent with effect from June 1.The ministry notified the rate-cut to the states despite differences on compensating them for losses of about Rs 13,000 crore in 2008-09 because of the cut. CST was cut from 4 per cent to 3 per cent on April 1, 2007. It was to be reduced to 2 per cent on April 1, 2008, and phased out by March 2010.
