Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has objected to Prime Minister Modi’s remarks on GST reduction. He has posted several questions on the X page regarding the Prime Minister’s speech on GST reduction.
According to Stalin, Prime Minister Modi said, “Indians can save ₹2.5 lakh crore by reducing GST and increasing the income tax exemption limit. Is this what we, the opposition parties, have been insisting on from the beginning? If these measures had been implemented 8 years ago, Indian families would have saved crores of rupees by now.”
Furthermore, half of the tax reductions announced now are being borne by state governments. Since the central government is concealing this fact and refusing to understand it, it is my duty to point this out. Meanwhile, the BJP government at the center is refusing to give states their fair share. Stalin said that Tamil Nadu is being denied funds under the Integrated Education Scheme simply because of its refusal to impose Hindi. Stalin asked when this injustice would end.
Stalin said that India cannot develop by punishing state governments that protect their rights and stand up for their people. Respect the federal ideology, release appropriate funds, and give people their fair share. “Give them what they want and give them benefits,” he said in the post.
Previously, in 2017, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) was implemented to ensure uniform taxation across the country. It levied taxes under four categories: 5, 12, 18, and 28. The implementation of GST led to a significant increase in the prices of many essential commodities. Opposition parties, including the Congress, protested against it.
However, despite widespread opposition, the GST tax remained in effect for the past eight years. In this context, in his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Modi announced that some reforms would be introduced in GST as a Diwali gift to the people of the country. Following this, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman issued an announcement on September 4th outlining which items would be exempt from tax and which would receive a reduction.
Accordingly, she announced that the four-tier tax had been reduced to two tiers, 5 percent and 18 percent, respectively. She also announced that certain items, including high-end cars, tobacco, and cigarettes, would be taxed at 40 percent under a special category. However, this tax reform came into effect yesterday. A few days ago, Prime Minister Modi, in his address to the nation, said that the GST tax reform was a sweet gift to the countrymen.
