Cong says govt delaying GST implementation

Congress today accused the government of being "insensitive" towards implementing GST and said the blame for delaying the key tax reform measure for three years should be on the Modi dispensation.
There is confusion on the launch of GST on July 1, Congress leader M Veerappa Moily said.
"VAT income of all states has declined sharply. This is mainly because of demonetisation and other factors. GST revenues will be decelerating in all states. The states will be badly hit. This has not been envisaged by Finance Minister. No provision has been made in the present Budget for meeting such challenges.

"That means they are most insensitive for implementing a very important enactment like GST, which was brought by us. If at all any blame should go, it is to the present government, which has delayed implementation of GST for more than three years," the former Union Minister said.
He said the GST network had rejected CAG's request to name Auditor and do extra audit. "This has had sad reflection with regard to preparedness to launch the GST," he said.
Moily said the Budget allocation for defence reflects the "sad affair" of allocations to the sector.

He said the allocation has been reduced by 5 per cent and this will "decelerate military modernization and preparedness".

Pointing out to the story of BSF soldier Tej Bahadur, who had put out a video of the food quality given to soldiers on social media, he said it reflects the morale of defence forces which is depleting day-by-day with such incidents.
"It is most unfortunate story, which reflects how the Army has been managed, how they are not being properly supplied with the rations, uniforms," he said.
He alleged that Rs 7,000 crore of capital budget in 2016-17 has been surrendered, "which underlies the structural incapability of this Government to spend even the inadequate allocation. I do not know whether the Defence Minister is doing his job or not except thumping his own chest".

"They do not do anything to strengthen the capabilities of their establishments. India faces conventional war challenges from Pakistan's F-16s and rapidly modernizing Chinese Air Force.
Moily alleged that the NDA government was indulging in
"only rhetoric and nothing else", saying it had no experience in handling things and the economy was in "bad shape", there are no jobs, agriculture growth is not there and bank NPAs are rising and loan growth is at a three-decade low.
"This government has no institutional memory, they do not have institutional experience and they do not have institutional network.
"So it is most unfortunate today that we are in this country where everywhere they are failing. There is only rhetoric, nothing else but rhetoric... No performance altogether," he said.

The former Law Minister said there is a "jobless" economy in India as CMIE estimated that Gross Fixed Capital Formation will contract by 2 per cent in 2016-17 and GDP will fall by at least 1 per cent, which is around Rs 1.5 lakh crore due to many "anti-development" policies of the present government.
He said the agriculture budget is "disappointing" and government has "created an artificial drought" and is doing nothing to help farmers.
"There is nothing to reform food and fertiliser subsidy in the budget. Doubling income of farmers is just a chimera. it is mere rhetoric," he said.

"With regards to providing employment under MGNREGS, it has been the lowest in the last five years. NPAs have increased and loan growth is at a three decadal low," he said.
Noting that the banking system is under stress, the Congress leader said, "It is your legacy to allow the banks to close. It is our legacy to nationalise the banks. They want to restart -- start with the open slate. I think they are going to create biggest crime against the banking system in this country."
Talking about fiscal consolidation that the government claims to have achieved, Moily said, "The calculation up to March, it (fiscal deficit) will definitely reach up to 4 per cent. That means that the so-called credible fiscal consolidation will just collapse.