Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Coordination Committee, an amalgam of trade bodies in the valley, warned the government of an agitation and demanded the withdrawal of the Presidential Order on Goods and Services Tax (GST) and roll back of the tax law passed in the Jammu and Kashmir legislature.
In a statement to KNS explaining the process through which GST was discussed and finally passed, the Committee said that the government should withdraw of Presidential Order, roll back of GST law passed in the legislature and declare J&K as free economic zone (FEZ).
“In the event of Government not acceding to our demands, within a week’s time, the JKCC will be forced to continue its agitation and shall intensify it across the state at all levels till our demands are met,” JKCC said in the statement to KNS.
The Committee said that the government surrendered the power to pursue its own fiscal policy and the state legislature and state cabinet have been reduced to zero on financial matters.
“The absolute powers on taxation have been surrendered to the GST council. J&K had absolute powers to tax services by its own law. This exclusive authority has also been surrendered. J&K has been reduced to dependence from that of autonomy. We have lost greatly politically, hence constitutionally,” it said.
“This is the 47th deceit inflicted upon the people of J&K and is the last nail in the coffin of financial autonomy,” the committee said.
The committee said that no trader is against any tax or tax reforms. “A trader at one place may be a trader but at hundred other places is himself a consumer. So to create a divide between the “trader” and the “consumer” will not be successful and is far-fetched and misconceived because the trader, at the end of the day, is himself a consumer,” it said.
“The Government is making unsuccessful attempts to malign the image of traders with an aim to create a wedge amongst themselves besides attempts are also afoot to mislead consumers,” it said. (KNS)
