Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 14: Jewellers across the State remained on roads for the thirteenth consecutive day by closing down their establishments over the Central Government’s decision of imposing one per cent excise duty on gold ornaments. However, they also expressed incapability to pay advance tax tomorrow.
Amid slogans, large number of jewellers, karigars and swarnkars assembled at Jain Bazaar and took out protest rally, which passed through various bazaars and culminated at the starting point. They demanded immediate roll back of the excise duty decision.
While speaking, Raman Suri, Chairman, Sarafa Association and Swarnkar Sangh Joint Action Committee said that on March 17, there will be a grand rally at Ram Lila Ground, New Delhi by jewellers from all across the nation, if Government failed to roll back its decision of imposing one per cent excise duty on gold ornaments.
He further said that Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley should immediately redress the issue of the protesting jewellers, otherwise it would not be possible to avoid the rally at any cost, which would be very devastating for the Union Government.
Raj Kumar Babber, All India Vice President Swarnkar Sangh and President Swarnkar Sangh Jammu Province appealed to all the jewelers across the State to participate in the rally to make it a grand success.
Parjan Kumar Jain, President Sarafa Association, Jammu, Kulbhushan Anand, President Swarnkar Sangh, Jammu District, Vijay Verma, General Secretary, Sarafa Association, Jammu, Sh. Ajay Vaid General Secretary Swarnkar Sangh, Jammu District in their speeches said that tomorrow is the last day of payment of advance tax and they are incapable to pay it due to losses worth crores during strike. “Government should think upon it and should diffuse the situation at the earliest by revoking the anti-jewellers decision”, they added.
Meanwhile, Udhampur Jewellers Ornaments Associ-ation under the chairmanship of its President Joginder Verma also staged protest and demanded immediate roll back of decision of imposing excise duty on gold ornaments announced in the recently budget presented by the Union Finance Minister.
The goldsmiths at Hiranagar continued their hunger strike for the third consecutive day under the leadership of Roop Lal Sundan, President, Goldsmiths Association, Hira-nagar and Sanjeev Kumar, Vice President.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
