PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss on Tuesday called for a CBI-led inquiry into the alleged excise duty and Value Added Tax evasion in TASMAC liquor business in the State.
In a statement, Dr. Ramadoss said it was shocking that sales tax and excise duty on liquor sold in TASMAC were not being paid. It was unacceptable that the taxes due to the State were allegedly being diverted to private individuals.
“While illicit liquor is being sold, around 5-10 liquor shops are being operated under every TASMAC outlet. These shops are being run for 24 hours and the allegation is that the taxes on liquor bottles being sold through these outlets are not being paid,” he said.
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“As former Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan said if excise duty and VAT had not been paid for 50% of the liquor bottles, the revenue that would have been generated from liquor sales (₹3,90, 713 crore) would have been lost to the State. This is more than 60% of Tamil Nadu’s direct debt. This is a big revenue loss and we cannot ignore this and move on,” he said.
Dr. Ramadoss said that there had been a furore in New Delhi for devising excise duty in a way that would reduce revenues for the State.
“In Tamil Nadu too, we need to find out about tax evasion in the last 20 years in liquor sales,” he said.
