Chennai: The mouthpiece of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, murasoliOn Saturday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was criticized for her “your Tamil Nadu” remark, which was made in Parliament last week.
Replying to the debate on price hike in Lok Sabha on August 1, Sitharaman said that although the Congress has been repeatedly accusing the BJP government of favoring Ambani and Adani.unga naatla, tamil naatla 59 MoUs worth Rs 35,000 crore have been signed with Adani (in your state Tamil Nadu) to set up data centers.
The Congress is an ally of the DMK in Tamil Nadu.
in an editorial murasoliDMK said sitharaman “lost my temper” To the extent of saying ‘Your Tamil Nadu’.
The editorial states that not all Tamil speakers are Tamil. Sitharaman was born and brought up in Tamil Nadu and speaks Tamil fluently.
“Why are you so agitated by ‘our’ Tamil Nadu,” the editorial said, asking Sitharaman to maintain “restraint” to find out “the truth about the country’s finances”.
“Funds can be sourced later. If she gains restraint, then only she will be able to understand the financial condition of the BJP regime. Instead, if she is constantly agitated, she will not realize the truth,” the editorial read.
The editorial referred to last month’s protest by rice-mill owners and said it was not just in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, but similar agitations had taken place in “BJP-ruled states of Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka”.
Rice-mill owners held protests across India, including Tamil NaduAgainst the central government’s decision to bring packaged food items, including rice, under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) slab of 5 per cent.
The editorial stated that the rice-mill owners were protesting “a 30 per cent hike in the price of rice across India”. While costs increased in other parts of the country, the editorial said that prices did not increase in Tamil Nadu “as it is a major producer of rice”.
“The production was high due to a well-organized public distribution system and free distribution of rice and since the land under irrigation was extensive,” the editorial said.
“If we question it, the minister talks about exemption from GST on cremation, burial, mortuary and funeral services. This shows why he was appointed Finance Minister. They will have to shamelessly do what they have been told,” the DMK said.
Last week, Sitharaman accused the DMK government of keeping the prices of milk and related products above the rates set by the government and then blaming the central government for it.
‘Parliament is not a chorus group’
There will be questions and the ruling party will have to answer them, murasoli said the editorial.
“Parliament is a place of debate,” the editorial said. “When you have questions, answer them instead of answering them… THose who are not members of a chorus group to talk alike.”
The editorial also sought to counter the minister’s claim that a “strong” GST collection meant that the Indian economy was stable.
“If people are paying taxes properly, it means people tolerate you, not that Indian economy is stagnant,” the editorial said. “If many candidates write NEET, does it mean that everyone likes the exam?”
The editorial said that tax remittances and economic health are two different issues.
“They claim that they have collected more taxes from Tamil Nadu. Does he mean that all the industrialists of TN have accepted the GST figures?” the editorial asked.
‘Too many half-truths and one complete lie’
Tamil Nadu Finance Minister P. Thiaga Rajan (PTR) claimed that Tamil Nadu was often targeted by the central government because the state was “performing well” and represented the last bastion of states’ rights and good economic performance in this country. used to do.
In a series of videos that he shared on Twitter on 4 augustPTR, as he is commonly known, called Sitharaman’s comments “a lot of half-truths” and “a complete lie”.
Delays due to prior commitments and making both English and Tamil versions
Truth in front today
1) 3 Step Process at 5% GST (As said by Hon’ble Union FM himself outside home)
2) GST is not really federal
3) VAT on petrol and diesel
4) DMK (and others) election promises
5) Why target TN? https://t.co/zNe7TpH9yP
— Dr. P. Thiaga Rajan (PTR) (@ptrmadurai) 3 August 2022
“This year, the fiscal deficit of the central government in the budget is 7 per cent. Ours (of Tamil Nadu) was close to 3.5 per cent. Inflation in this country is around 8 percent. Ours is close to 5 per cent.” He is heard saying in the videoStating that Tamil Nadu had also performed better than the central government in terms of GST revenue.
He also claimed that “one hundred per cent” of the agenda of the GST Council was decided by the central government “without consulting the states” and that, with every Finance Commission, Tamil Nadu is “getting less money and it is being taken up”. Spend it in the way the central government thinks it right”.
“If this is not colonialism then what is? That’s why they (central government) don’t like people who stand against colonialism. I can’t think of any other reason,” he is heard saying in the video,
“In Tamil Nadu, we have a functional government that is showing compassion, social justice, and yet gives better returns,” he said.
PTR said in the video, the BJP has either won elections in most states of India or gained power by “toppling governments through the backdoor or buying MLAs”.
“Very few states have been successful in retaining their independence, of which Tamil Nadu is one of them which has been able to do well economically as well,” he said.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)