PIL in Supreme Court Seeks Clarity on GST for Mental Health Services

📅 Date: October 28, 2024
📂 Category: GST Recent News
⌛ Read Time: 4 Min

Anvi Kumar, a 17-year-old Delhi student and founder of The Mind Canvas, has filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court of India. A student at The Shriram School Aravali, Gurgaon, Anvi is challenging the lack of transparency around the 18% GST rate on mental health services, advocating for a clear and fair tax policy.

Key Details of the PIL:

RTI Inquiry: Anvi’s RTI to NIMHANS revealed inconsistent responses on whether mental health services are subject to GST, highlighting policy ambiguities.

Core Issues Raised: The PIL questions if stakeholder consultation occurred and if affordability and accessibility impacts were considered.

Conflicting Responses: NIMHANS stated that “GST is generally not applicable to Mental Health Services,” sparking confusion as other responses contradicted this statement.

In parallel, Anvi has launched a Change.org campaign (Support here) to build awareness and rally support for a tax policy that prioritizes mental health care access.

Through this PIL, The Mind Canvas and Anvi Kumar seek transparent government policies, aiming to treat mental health services as essential and accessible to all.

📢 #MentalHealthMatters #GSTClarity #PublicInterest #MentalHealthPolicy #SupremeCourtIndia #TheMindCanvas #AffordableHealthcare