Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh criticized FM Nirmala Sitharaman for defending the hike in GST rates on food items, alleging that the Modi government was punishing aspiration and desire to buy more hygienically packaged goods.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh criticized FM Nirmala Sitharaman for defending the hike in GST rates on food items, alleging that the Modi government was punishing aspiration and desire to buy more hygienically packaged goods.
The Congress said on July 20 that raising taxes on some essential consumption items was “cruel” on the part of the government as it would further increase inflation.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh slammed Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for defending the hike in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rates on food items, alleging that the Narendra Modi government’s aspiration and desire to buy more hygienically packaged goods is punishing.
He noted that “branded and labeled” is very different from “pre-packaged and labeled”, as the first refers only to products from large companies that are priced higher and are purchased by the middle and upper-middle class, while the latter Affects small businesses whose products are bought by the poor by the lower middle class.
“Top is time. Raising tax rates is brutal when CPI (Consumer Price Index) inflation is over 7 per cent, WPI (Wholesale Price Index) inflation is over 15 per cent, unemployment is high, rupee is depreciating, The current account deficit is widening and inflation is expected to rise across the globe,” Mr Ramesh said in a series of tweets.
“Why should poor consumers not aspire to buy pre-packaged and labeled goods,” he said. In a 10-point response to Ms Sitharaman’s defense of an increase in GST on food items, Mr Ramesh said a West Bengal minister who attended the meeting disclosed that it was a virtual one and the state finance ministers consulted each did not do. other.
“The West Bengal minister has also contradicted the Union Finance Minister and said that she and some others have opposed the fitment committee report which recommended the increase,” he said. The Congress leader said, “Changing their stand, the government and the finance minister now use the word ‘consensus’ and not ‘consensus’. Mr. Ramesh claimed that the GST on cremation grounds has been increased to 18%.
“Suppose there is some input tax in pre-packaged goods. Was there a demand from producers and sellers to levy GST on pre-packaged and labeled goods? We are not aware,” he said.
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The Congress leader in his rhetoric also asked why small businesses, shopkeepers and consumers, who are all stakeholders, were complaining about the revised GST rates.
The Congress and other opposition parties are largely opposing the hike in GST rates on consumption items and have stalled the proceedings of both the Houses of Parliament over the issue. They also protested inside the Parliament complex and displayed essential items of consumption there.