*House arrest of Farooq, others unfortunate: Mir
Excelsior Correspondent
Jammu, Jan 1: All India Congress Committee (Seva Dal) chief Lal Ji Desai today hit out at the Modi Government for the increase in the GST rates on items of common use as new year’s gift to the people and said that for the last seven years unprecedented price hike, high inflation rates with high unemployment rate are the hallmark of BJP Government.
Addressing a joint press conference at PCC office here today, along with JKPCC chief GA Mir, working president Raman Bhalla and chief spokesperson Ravinder Sharma Desai expressed deep shock over the tragedy at holy Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine and expressed deep sympathies with families of those killed and prayed for early recovery of the injured .
Mir termed it as a result of the grave negligence on the part of the administration and management and demanded a high level probe into the tragedy. He demanded adequate ex-gratia relief of Rs 50 lakhs for the casualty and Rs 10 lakh to the seriously injured.
Seva Dal chief said that every New Year day, we used to wish each other happiness and prosperity. However, have you ever thought about what our Government is giving us on the new year for our happiness and prosperity? What are Modi Ji and his Government wishing for us? Like for the last seven years, this year also the gift given to the people of the country by the Modi government is – ‘Gift of Mahangai- price rise and inflation’.
Desai further said that on the first day of 2022 Modi Government gave a New Year gift to all of us in the form of Inflation. Inflationary pressure is mounting, with November 2021 WPI at 14.23 %, which is at over 10 years high, and its impact is likely to be felt more in the new year. He said from buying clothes and footwear to withdrawing our own money from ATMs is going to be expensive. Finished goods such as apparel and textiles are set to get more expensive from January 1, 2022, with the Union Government increasing the GST on such items from 5% to 12%. The GST rate on apparel costing up to Rs 1,000 per piece has been hiked from 5% to 12%.
With this, over 15 lakh jobs in main and ancillary units would be lost because of raised GST and therefore, unviable increased cost of production. Because the unorganized sector accounts for over 80% of fabric production in the country, raising the GST on fabrics to 12 % will hurt power loom and handloom weavers’ business and employment. Due to extraordinary price increases in raw materials like yarn, packing materials, and freight, the market will likely experience a 15-20% price increase in clothing. The GST rate on footwear (costing up to Rs 1,000 per pair has also been hiked from 5% to 12%.
RBI has approved to increase the charge on cash withdrawal after free transactions. According to RBI, banks will charge Rs 21 from their customers after free transactions. Auto rickshaw rides booked through app aggregators like Ola and Uber to get costlier. The Government will levy a 5% GST on auto rides booked online from January 1, ending an existing exemption.
Meanwhile, Mir condemned the unlawful action of the Govt. to put former Chief Minister and sitting Member of Lok Sabha Farooq Abdullah and others under house arrest, as per reports and termed it unfortunate and against the principles of democracy and Constitution. He said that peaceful right to protest is recognized and guaranteed by the Constitution and basic principle of democracy but such actions are very harsh, undemocratic and condemnable.
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