Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Jan 1: Scores of industrial unit owners, protesting under the banner of Federation Chambers of Industries Kashmir (FCIK), against state government’s order to allegedly benefit select group of investors based in Jammu region, were taken into preventive custody on Monday.
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Raising slogans against the government decision, unit holders from different parts of the Kashmir valley had gathered at Press Colony near here, demanding “justice.”
”We are demanding scrapping of recently issued SRO 519 and SRO 521 under which only handful of outside investors based in Jammu region, would benefit,” the unit holders alleged and said it was discriminatory.
FCIK President Mukhtair Yousuf said providing 42 per cent Central Goods and Service Tax ( CGST) refund from the state share to select investors based in Jammu region is a burden on the State exchequer.
He said there are only 282 units who have been notified to get benefit of 42 per cent out of the total 60,000 units in the state under CGST refund from state government while they will get another 58 per cent refund from the Central Government.
However, he said FCIK was not averse to refund for any industrial units. But, he alleged that a deal has been struck which made government pass the SROs in such a hurry while ignoring majority of local industry.
The industrial units holders alleged that under the SRO 519, mostly the outside investors based in Jammu, Kathua and Samba have been notified for availing CGST refund.
A leading unit holder Qalander said these outside companies have annual turnover worth thousands of crores which means the CGST refund to them also accounts for a huge amount.
He said the SROs are quite bizarre because the State Government has to pay massive refund amount for these outside companies. Why did the government have to pass the SRO in such a hurry while putting this burden on State exchequer, he asked.
When the unit holders tried to hit the main Residency road, police swung into action and took them into custody.
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