New Delhi: The Congress-led Karnataka government on Wednesday held a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi against the Centre for alleged financial injustice with the southern state in releasing funds.
In the Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah-led protest, state ministers, MLAs and leaders came to Delhi to register their resistance against the Centre for not fulfilling the state government's several demands.
The Karnataka government accused the Narendra Modi-led government of treating it stepmotherly. "The reduction in the state's share of central taxes which has led to a staggering loss," CM Siddaramaiah said.
Karnataka government alleged that the implementation of GST has turned into a bane due to the discontinuation of compensation in June 2022. "This abrupt halt has severely crippled our fiscal health, making it a herculean task to regain the tax collection growth rate," he alleged.
"Our government has written letters to the Centre to seek an update on the GST compensation, but unfortunately, we have not received any response from them," CM claimed.
Siddaramaiah said that Karnataka is number two as far as tax collection is concerned, and Maharashtra is number one. As a matter of fact, Karnataka's substantial contribution of Rs 4.30 lakh crore in tax revenue but the state receives just about Rs 50, 000 crore from the Union government.
In the drought situation, they accused the Centre of not addressing their demands. Addressing the people, Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar said, "Karnataka is giving the highest revenue to this country. We are asking for our rights, we are asking for our proper share of revenue."
During the protest, Karnataka leaders said this protest was not just a political movement but also a social movement. It is a clarion call for justice, a plea for equity, and a demonstration of unwavering commitment to safeguard the interests and welfare of every Karnataka people.
