Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala on Friday, 5 November, said the "rapid and repeated backbreaking increase" in the excise duty and state value added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel were like the 'Jizyah tax' by the Narendra Modi-led government at the centre and Manohar Lal Khattar-led government in Haryana, PTI reported.
"The rapid and repeated backbreaking increase in excise duty and State VAT on the two fuels are Jizyah Tax by Modi and Khattar governments," he said in a statement, as per PTI. Jizyah was a tax system in countries that were governed by Islamic law.
His comments came days after the Ministry of Finance reduced the excise duty on petrol by Rs 5 and the excise duty on diesel by Rs 10, with 17 National Democratic Alliance-led states, including Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Haryana, cutting state taxes on petrol and diesel.
"In the first nine months of the year 2021 alone, petrol price was increased by ₹ 28 per litre and diesel price by ₹ 26 per litre. Reduction in the price of petrol and diesel by ₹ 5 and ₹ 10 per litre respectively is being tom-tommed as a Diwali gift. This is a clear deception," he said.
"During the previous Congress government up till October 2014, VAT on diesel in Haryana was 8.8 per cent. Post-reduction and even on a date, VAT in Haryana is 18 per cent, and additional VAT in the state is five per cent. This is a clear increase of over 100 per cent. Even after the so-called reduction of VAT on 4 November, 2021, the VAT on petrol is 18.20 per cent, and additional VAT is 5 per cent," he added.
"Will the duo of Khattar-Dushyant Chautala answer people for this brazen loot by their government?" he asked.
On Thursday, 4 November, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had announced a Rs 7 reduction of VAT on petrol and Rs 2 on diesel.
Surjewala said that the Haryana government did not want the people of the state to enjoy any potential benefits of a reduction in crude oil prices.
"The Khattar government is dishing out deceit by indulging in faking of numbers. The Haryana government has purportedly reduced the VAT on petrol by 6.5 per cent but put a rider of maximum reduction of ₹ 1.12 only," he said.
"In the case of diesel, it is even more intriguing. The Khattar government has purportedly reduced VAT on diesel by 0.40 per cent but increased the maximum VAT amount from ₹ 10.08 per litre to ₹ 11.86 per litre," he claimed.
"The reason is clear - whenever the crude oil prices will fall, Khattar government will profiteer, and people of Haryana will get no benefit. But if the crude oil prices were to increase, the burden of the same shall be put on the people of the state. This is particularly a draconian anti-farmer measure," he alleged.
(With inputs from PTI)
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