‘Thankfully, it wasn’t taken up’: Omar on proposed GST hike on Kashmiri shawls

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said that the issue of hiking GST on Kashmiri shawls didn’t come up in the 55^th meeting of the GST Council which was held in Rajasthan on Saturday.

“There had been a lot of speculation that GST on shawls, particularly pashmina shawls, was going to be hiked, so we had come prepared to ensure that does not happen,” Omar told reporters after the meeting. “Thankfully, it wasn’t taken up and in the future also, we will ensure that something like this is not considered because it would be life threatening to our pashmina shawl industry.”

Omar also wrote on X, “Contrary to media speculation & some ill-informed commentary there was no proposal or discussion to increase GST on Pashmina shawls to 28%. We had gone to Jaisalmer fully prepared to defend the interests of our shawl weavers & handicrafts persons but the defence was not necessary.”

Political parties in Kashmir have been raising concerns about the reports that GST would be hiked on Kashmiri shawls.

Former Chief Minister and People’s Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday raised concerns about the proposed GST hike on Kashmiri shawls.

Stating that the Kashmiri shawl is “not just a means of livelihood for us but an identity of Jammu and Kashmir,” Mufti said, “when you increase GST on Kashmiri shawl to 28 per cent, our art will automatically die”.

MLA Handwara and People’s Conference chief Sajad Lone on Friday had said “handmade shawls are a rarity and the Kashmiri shawl embodies our history and is an ambassador of our artistry”.

“I hope the increase in GST tax on shawls is an oversight…Why are we eroding their competitiveness by putting them in higher GST tax brackets? It really does not make sense to tax these hands,” he said. “Increase in GST on shawls will be a big blow to the industry. It is an appeal to please revert to the lowest GST tax brackets. This is a cottage industry and needs to be encouraged.”

On Friday, the Jammu and Kashmir government had assured to safeguard the interests of the famed handicraft and handloom sector.

Responding to certain reports with regard to the proposed revision of tax slab in the upcoming GST Council meeting, a government spokesman clarified that the UT government has already taken up the matter with the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, “requesting therein for lowering the GST rate structure from existing 12 per cent to 5 per cent uniformly, including shawls priced above Rs 1,000, with the objective of reducing the tax burden on this artisan-driven industry and supporting marketability”.