Cong demands separate law for transparency in poll funding

The Congress today demanded that the government introduce a separate legislation for ensuring transparency in electoral funding as it raised objection to making changes in the Representation to People Act through amendments in the Finance Bill.
The opposition party also accused the government of giving an "under-performing economy" to the country as it failed to benefit from the world economy by raising exports.
Criticising the government's decision to bring changes in the Representation to People Act through amendments in the Finance Bill, Congress spokesperson Deepender Singh Hooda said it should bring a separate Bill to ensure transparency in election funding.

"The Congress party demands that for transparency in electoral funding, there should be a separate Act. The government should bring in a separate legislation on transparency in electoral funding and there should be a thorough discussion on this," he told reporters.
Raising strong objections to the 40-odd amendments made in the Finance Bill, Hooda said that "this is not a good tradition set" by the government and "we have raised this objection".
The Congress leader also criticised the government's economic policies, saying the disparity between the poor and the rich was widening due to the "wrong taxation and economic policies" pursued by the NDA dispensation.

He said the government has reduced direct taxes and increased the indirect ones, thus helping the rich and hurting the poor.

He also put forth a demand to reduce tax on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 per litre that would provide succour to the poor. "All Indians including the poor and the super rich are paying the same tax on petroleum products," he said.
"The government has failed to take advantage of the world economic conditions. Our government is unable to (reap) benefit from reduced exports from China. This government has given the country an under-performing economy.
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The Congress spokesperson said it was for the first time ever that industry was borrowing less from banks in comparison to previous years.
He said investments have declined and growth in non-food credit growth this quarter was at a record low of 4.34 per cent, which has dipped to a 58-year low level during the NDA tenure.
"This is a clear indication that there would be lesser job creation," he said.
Hooda said the UPA government had given an average growth rate of 7.8 per cent in its 10 years of rule which calculated as per the new methodology translates into 11.3 per cent.

The excise duty on petrol and diesel has gone up to Rs 8.95 per litre and Rs 7.96 per litre under the NDA rule, from Rs 1.10 per litre and Rs 1.35 per litre during the UPA tenure.
"The most retrograde tax is excise duty on petrol and diesel...I ask the government to lower excise duty on petrol and diesel by at least Rs 5 per litre," he said.
He also termed the search and seizure powers given to tax officials as part of the Finance Bill 2017 as a "draconian provision and against the tenets of natural justice", he said.