Reacting to the 18% GST implemented on life and medical insurance premiums, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor stated on Tuesday that imposing GST on something as essential as life insurance is unacceptable. He emphasized that India already has the highest out-of-pocket healthcare expenses, and adding an 18% GST is unfair.
“You can’t impose GST on something as essential as life insurance. The government has announced a policy of life and health insurance for all by 2047, yet they are taxing it in a way that makes achieving this goal impossible. We already have the highest out-of-pocket expenses in health, and now imposing an 18% GST is not fair to people. Kerala also needs an AIIMS, which has been promised since 2014, and that was part of our protest,” said Tharoor.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari criticized the GST, saying it unfairly burdens struggling individuals. “If a person is unwell or has met with an accident, he is already struggling, and you are taxing such a person. Looting a struggling person like this is wrong. Gadkari himself wrote regarding this and demanded a rollback. We are raising this issue in the interest of the people,” he said.
Notably, leaders from the INDIA alliance held a protest outside the Makar Dwar in Parliament on Tuesday, demanding the rollback of GST on health and life insurance. Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, also joined the protest.
Earlier on Friday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee requested the central government to withdraw the GST on life and health insurance premiums, terming the taxation on such items as “anti-people.” In a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman dated August 2, she wrote that the GST on essential items increases the financial burden on common people. Banerjee stated that the additional 18% GST might deter many individuals from taking new policies or continuing their existing insurance coverage, leaving them vulnerable to unforeseen financial distress.