Real issue is Centre’s denial of State’s rightful share, says K.N. Balagopal

Real issue is Centre’s denial of State’s rightful share, says K.N. Balagopal

Kerala


Finance Minister K. N. Balagopal on Wednesday stood firm on his stance that the tax raises and cesses in the Budget were not exorbitant even as he urged Kerala MPs to fight for the State’s rightful share from the Central pool.

Talking to reporters here, Mr. Balagopal said the State would again press for the extension of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) compensation period by another five years at the upcoming GST Council meeting on February 18.

At present, the State did not have any dispute with the Centre over GST compensation dues, rather, its demand was that the compensation period should be extended, he said. Only ₹750 crore was due from the Centre by way of GST compensation dues, he said.

The MPs from Kerala should try to safeguard the State’s interests, looking beyond political affiliations, he said.

Defending the social security cess on fuel and liquor and the tax proposals in the Budget as nothing out of the ordinary, he blamed the Congress-led UDF of skirting the ‘‘real issue”, which concerned the denial of the State’s rightful tax share from the Centre.

Mr. Balagopal accused the Centre of strangling the State financially, saying that States today lacked even the rights enjoyed by panchayats.

Mr. Balagopal pointed out that the Budgets immediately preceding the 2023-24 one featured revival packages and not major tax proposals given the COVID-19 scenario.

Mr. Balagopal expressed the hope that the efficiency of tax collection would improve with the government completing the reorganisation of the State GST department.



Source link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *