New Delhi: Alongside questioning the Union Government over the future roadmap of nationwide lockdown, the Congress party, on Wednesday, urged Center to share 75 per cent of revenue, collected by increasing petrol and diesel prices, with the states.
Earlier on Wednesday, chief ministers of Congress-ruled states held a meeting with the party president Sonia Gandhi and other senior leaders, via video conferencing, discussing the need of immediate financial assistance in a fight against COVID-19 due to which the states have lost crores of revenue.
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala, who was also present in the meeting, said, "All the states were unanimous in pointing out that the government of India is forcing them to physical distress by not allocating money to them for fighting against COVID-19."
In order to shore up revenues during the lockdown, various state governments hiked petrol and diesel prices, while many of them have increased Value added tax (VAT) on liquor.
On Tuesday night, the Union Government had also increased the excise duty on petrol by steep Rs 10 per litre and on diesel by Rs 13 per litre, at a time when the global oil prices are extremely low.
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Surjewala informed that the matter was also discussed during the meeting of CMs, saying, "Congress chief ministers as well as Dr Manmohan Singh and former party President Rahul Gandhi expressed deep concerns over the insurmountable and cruel increase in taxes of petrol and diesel and fleecing Rs 1.40 lakh crores annually by Modi government from the pockets of 130 crore Indians.
On being asked whether Congress-led state governments will follow the same path, Surjewala replied, "We raised this concern today that the government of India should transfer 75 to 80% of this money to the states. This will ensure that no burden is transferred to people of India and this money is adequately utilised to fight corona as well as the economic crisis."
"The CMs were of the opinion that they will once again write to PM Modi to give them financial support so that the fight against coronavirus can be fought jointly with Centre leading it and the states to be the executive partners on the ground," he added.
Congress also questioned the government over the criteria it will adopt to judge how long the COVID-19 induced lockdown will continue.
Surjewala took a jibe at BJP-led state governments over the matter saying that the other states have the same concerns but are unable to raise them due to the "pressure" of their party and PM Modi.
He asserted, "States want to know, what the government will do after lockdown 3.0? Not only in terms of testing, availability of PPE kits but also to reaching out the vulnerable sections as well as reopening of industries. There is no roadmap revealed by the Central government for lifting lockdown."
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