New Delhi: The Opposition Thursday accused the government of not keeping the interests of the middle class in mind while hiking indirect taxes and imposing taxes on medical insurance, as well as ruining the finances of banks by introducing ‘haircuts’ for corporates.
During the Thursday budget discussion in the Rajya Sabha, Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya’s comment on the money spent on the training of wrestler Vinesh Phogat after her disqualification from the Paris Olympics also came under heavy criticism.
Aam Aadmi Party Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh claimed the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has waived Rs 3 lakh crore in ‘haircuts’ for corporates without any fuss and, in this backdrop, questioned Mandaviya’s remarks.
“In the name of haircuts, the government has cut the necks of people for its crony capitalist friends and corporate houses…. It, however, has not waived the farmers’ loans and also mentioned the amount spent on Vinesh,” he said.
Moreover, Singh accused the government of writing off bad loans worth Rs 5,44,000 crore for corporates despite having no funds for Agniveers or farmers. The government has also not restored the old pension scheme and not cleared the dues of sanitation and railway workers, he pointed out.
Shiv Sena’s Priyanka Chaturvedi also called out Mandaviya’s comment on Phogat, saying, “Hearts in the country are filled with sorrow; we demand a discussion. What action has the Government of India taken to ensure Bharat ki beti Vinesh Phogat gets justice?”
Rajya Sabha chair Jagdeep Dhankhar did not allow a discussion on the issue despite several Opposition MPs — from Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP John Brittas to Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge — raising it in the House.
“How does only 100 grams lead to a disqualification? Who is behind it?” Congress leader Kharge asked before walking out.
Amid the chaos, Dhankhar said that challenging the chair’s authority through information from letters and newspapers is unparliamentary.
Calling the 1975 Emergency a consequence of protests, Dhankhar added, “We saw a dark phase of our democracy during the Emergency. We know how that starts. It starts with a challenge to parliamentary institutions.”
Also read: ‘Understand your sarcasm’ — VP Dhankhar & Kharge’s spat in Rajya Sabha over Kerala landslides
‘Taxes on medical insurance not daylight robbery’
Commenting on the budget, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said, “The government’s intent may be right but not content.”
He highlighted four main problems: “Why has private investment in India stabilised in the last ten years?… Is it due to the environment of fear, which is not conducive to investment? Why is manufacturing failing? Garment exports in 2013-14 stood at $15 billion and, in 2023-24, at $14 billion — it has fallen. Why has private consumption fallen? While high-income consumption has risen, mass consumption has fallen. Why have wages stagnated?”
On the other hand, Congress MP Vivek Tankha said, “The government has taxed the middle class through indirect taxes…. Indirect taxes should be low but have risen over the past ten years as direct taxes have declined. Through tax on medical insurance, the government has taxed the middle class.”
Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party MP Vijaysai Reddy attacked the government for resolving the problem of bad loans in banks by charging people for not maintaining the savings account minimum balance.
CPI(M) MP John Brittas slammed the Centre for ignoring states, saying, “Principles of federalism are being scuttled. In 2019-20, the total cess and surcharges collected was Rs 2,00,544 crore and, in 2023-24, Rs 5 lakh crore. The revenue of the Centre has increased by 96%. In 2023-24, the Centre earned Rs 4,32,000 crore in cess and surcharges on petroleum, while all states together garnered Rs 3,18,000 crore.”
Responding to the allegations, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the GST Council decided to tax medical insurance and, before GST, every state levied taxes on the premiums collected on health insurance.
“A few newspapers wrote the Centre pocketed Rs 24,529 crore in taxes on medical insurance, but the states got more than 71 percent. We may agree or disagree with the rate of taxation, but this (GST Council) is a constitutional body, so this cannot be called daylight robbery,” she said.
Sitharaman also said the government introduced the NCLT for banks to recover money and asked Sanjay Singh to inform how much money the AAP-led Delhi government lost in the now-scrapped 2021-22 liquor policy.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
