FICO Strongly Opposes Government for Not Issuing GST Refunds
The Federation of Industrial & Commercial Organization (FICO), under the leadership of Gurmeet Singh Kular, President, FICO, along with Manjinder Singh Sachdeva, General Secretary, FICO, has demanded the immediate release of pending GST refunds from Harpal Singh Cheema, Finance Minister, Punjab, and Sanjeev Arora, Industry Minister, Punjab.
City Air News
Dec 26, 2025 07:11
0
Ludhiana, December 26, 2025: The Federation of Industrial & Commercial Organization (FICO), under the leadership of Gurmeet Singh Kular, President, FICO, along with Manjinder Singh Sachdeva, General Secretary, FICO, has demanded the immediate release of pending GST refunds from Harpal Singh Cheema, Finance Minister, Punjab, and Sanjeev Arora, Industry Minister, Punjab.
In a joint statement, Gurmeet Singh Kular and Manjinder Singh Sachdeva said that GST refunds are not being issued by the government. Finished products such as bicycles, sewing machines, and agricultural implements fall under the 5 per cent GST slab, whereas the raw materials used for manufacturing these products attract a higher GST rate of 18 per cent. Due to this inverted duty structure, GST refunds get stuck with the government.
They stated that this amount is the industry’s own money, and its non-release has pushed industries into a working capital deficit, resulting in over-utilisation of bank limits and forcing industries to pay higher interest to banks.
It is noteworthy that GST refunds have been pending for the past six months, and these refunds should be released with immediate effect. FICO urged the government to intervene with the concerned GST officials and ensure that GST refunds are released automatically after the filing of returns.
They further clarified that this money is neither a grant nor a subsidy, but the rightful money of the industry, and should be released at the earliest.
The FICO leadership also warned that if GST refunds are not provided, the industry will be forced to protest against the government.
