Pointing to what he said injustice meted out by the Union government in the devolution of taxes to southern States, Jewargi MLA and chairperson of Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board (KKRDB) Ajay Singh has said that the BJP is destroying the very spirit of federal system in India.
“Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and other southern States where the BJP is not in power are not given their due share in Central taxes. All these States are approaching the Supreme Court seeking due share in Central taxes. The BJP government at the Centre has created a situation where these States have to approach the Supreme Court for their rightful share in Central taxes. It is a very dangerous development and harmful to the very spirit of the federal system,” Mr. Singh said.
Addressing a media conference at the District Congress Committee in Kalaburagi on Tuesday, Mr. Singh gave details on how the BJP-led Union government deprived Karnataka of its rightful share in Central taxes as well as drought relief.
“Karnataka is reeling under severe drought. After assessing the initial drought damage, the State government had, in September itself, submitted its request to the Union government to release drought relief as per the norms of NDRF [National Disaster Response Fund]. However, the Union government did not release the funds to compensate drought-hit farmers even after our repeated requests. With no option left, the State government had to approach the Supreme Court. The Union government has agreed to pay relief within a week. It is a great victory for the State and its drought-hit farmers,” Mr. Singh said.
Terming the BJP-led Union government anti-farmer, Mr. Singh said that farmers are increasingly committing suicide owing to the anti-farmer policies of the Central government.
“When Manmohan Singh was Prime Minister in the Congress-led UPA [United Progressive Alliance] government, farm loans to the tune of ₹72,000 crore was waived. Prime Minister Narendra Modi who took over the Union government in 2014 did not waive farm loan in the last 10 years despite crisis hitting the farming community. Instead, the Modi government has written off corporate loans to the tune of ₹14 lakh crore. It shows Modi’s love for his corporate friends like Ambani and Adani and aversion towards farmers,” Mr. Singh said.
