New Delhi, June 24 -- In olden days, noble kings would disguise themselves as commoners and go about visiting marketplaces and homes to check if the people were happy and not being cheated or persecuted in any way. This government appears keen to uphold this glorious tradition. It wants to make sure that rapacious merchants and manufacturers do not rip off consumers. Only that it's unclear whether it's doing people a good turn or unnecessarily doing a job that's better left to market competition. The GST Council, the apex decision-making body on the goods and services tax, has decided to impose a hefty fine of 10% on any amount "profiteered" by manufacturers by not passing on benefits of input tax credits or lower tax rates to consumers....