Early Times Report
Jammu, Dec 5: The state unit of Congress today accused the ruling PDP-BJP coalition government of insulting the religious sentiments of the people, by refusing to withdraw the service tax imposed on the helicopter service to Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.
"Refusal to rollback the service tax on the helicopter services for Mata Vaishno Devi is an insult to the religious sentiments of the people," Chief spokesman of the JKPCC Ravinder Sharma said.
He was reacting to the statement of the J-K Finance Minister Haseeb Drabu in which he had justified the imposition of service tax on the pilgrims.
"If there is no problem in paying Municipal taxes and tax by Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, what is problem in paying Rs 100 tax to us (State government)," Drabu told reporters here yesterday.
"Who uses chopper services? Only rich and elite? They can pay and have no problem in paying," he had said.
Sharma said that it reflects a total insensitive approach of the present dispensation towards the "religious sentiments" of the people and a slap on the face of BJP which had announced that the same shall be withdrawn.
"The utter failure of the BJP over the issue exposes its double standards as well as its total surrender and helplessness for the sake of power."
"It is ironical that the party which always cried hoarse over the issue of religious sentiments, has led to imposition of pilgrims tax, when came to power for first time in the State," Sharma said.
He claimed that on the contrary, the previous government in which Congress was coalition partner, amended the Panchayat Raj Act and deleted a sub-clause, which had empowered the Panchayats to impose pilgrim tax.
"This was done to respect the religious sentiments of the public," he said.
Questioning the logic of the government behind imposition of tax on the helicopter that "only rich" use the service, JKPCC Chief Spokesman said that, it was not the question as to "who can pay for it but these steps amount to hurting the religious sentiments of the people, causing great resentment over the indifferent treatment." |
