The Gauhati High Court recently ruled that the beverages like carbonated fruit drinks manufacturer and sold by Guwahati based XSS Beverages fall under the category of “fruit pulp or fruit juice based drinks” which is subject to a goods and services tax (GST) of 12 per cent, and not subjected under the “aerated water” category which carry a higher 28 per cent GST.
The Court observed that any fruit beverage which has a minimal presence of carbonated water does not make a fruit based drink ‘aerated water’ if it has more than 10% fruit content.
