PANAJI
Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Shantaram Naik on Saturday demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation into the matter of initial fixation of exorbitant rates by the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council and now causing approximately Rs 20,000 crore losses to the Union and States and urged the CBI to file criminal prosecutions against those responsible, including Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Revenue Secretary Dr Hasmukh Adhia and Additional Secretary Arun Goyal.
Naik said that Rs 20,000 crore losses may be notional but that in the past, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has relied upon notional losses to blame the UPA government.
"Although Rs 20,000 crore losses may be notional but damage caused Central government and State governments is real and Prime Minister as head of the government, who gave false assurances to the nation and created a false economic picture and now reversing his major decisions, is solely responsible,"
Naik stated.
The Congress president sought to point out that although Goods and Services Tax Act was originally the UPA's baby, the irrational exorbitant rates presently imposed were not decided upon by the UPA.
Naik said, "GST has brought in economic terror in the circles of small traders and common man and revision of rates in every meeting of the Council, creating utter confusion in the economy causing rash act of criminal negligence, breach of trust, forgery and mischief, which acts, needs to be investigated and inquired into".
Naik said that instead of economic considerations, it is the Gujarat elections which have been given top priority by BJP government and alleged that the bureaucrats have been made to dance to the tunes of their political masters.
"If CBI is allowed to investigate and inquire into the matter, all minutes of the meetings of GST Council including the opinions given by State representatives should be thoroughly examined,"
he said.
