Amaravati, July 2 -- Former Andhra Pradesh IT Minister and YSRCP leader, Gudivada Amarnath, on Thursday slammed state cabinet minister Nara Lokesh, claiming "artificial growth" in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) numbers for the first quarter of the financial year 2026-27.

Nara Lokesh had lauded the 21 per cent year-on-year growth in GST collections for June 2026; however, Amarnath claimed that the numbers were skewed given the -7 per cent year-on-year growth in the first quarter of FY 2025-26 in the state's SGST collection, after adjusting the IGST settlement.

In an X post, Gudivada Amarnath said that Nara Lokesh shared the data without understanding the reasoning behind the figures.

The former minister wrote, "It is heartening to see...