Yog Raj Sharma
The North News
Shimla, September 24
The Congress party has launched a sharp attack on the central government over recent announcements of Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms. Naresh Chauhan, Principal Media advisor to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, on Wednesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of misleading the public by taking credit for tax relief after years of imposing economic burdens.He said the BJP hurriedly rolled out GST in 2017, which adversely affected ordinary citizens. At the time, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had labelled it the “Gabbar Singh Tax.”
Chauhan alleged that the government collected nearly ₹55 lakh crore from GST in the past eight years but failed to pass on benefits to consumers, even while purchasing cheap oil from Russia. He stressed that GST revenue shares owed to states were a right, not a favour. He added that the previous BJP government in Himachal received ₹13,000 crore in compensation over five years, whereas the present Congress-led state government has been denied similar benefits, resulting in a loss of ₹3,000 crore.
Chauhan questioned the BJP’s stance, asking: “Whose government imposed GST in 2017, and who is now claiming credit for reducing taxes?”
