New Delhi, Oct.5: After asking states to slash the Value-Added Tax (VAT) on fuel by 5 per cent, Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said that he is hopeful that the states will comply with the proposal to revise their tax structure and will keep the consumer interest as a top priority.

“This is not a political issue, the government has revised its excise duty keeping in mind its fiscal prudence and it is the responsibility of the states also to formulate their tax schemes accordingly,” added the minister, on the sidelines of World Economic Forum.

Talking about the GST on petroleum products, the minister said, “I believe that petrol, diesel and gas should be brought under the ambit of the GST structure.”

“This is not an administrative decision. It is for the first time post-independence that such mechanism has been structured where the states and centre both will decide on the issue together,” he added. (ANI)