Rao: Centre goofing up tax devolution to states

Chief Minister, K. Chandrasekhar Rao, on Thursday, hit out at the BJP government at the Centre while alleging that it had been goofing up the tax devolution to state governments.

While intervening when finance minister T. Harish Rao was replying to the discussion on the Budget 2020-21, he alleged that the BJP government has been misusing its power which he had achieved after a prolonged political struggle.

Maintaining that in the Constitution, the procedure for tax collection and its devolution was clearly derived, he said that devolution is not a charity and it is a constitutional right of the state government. Whichever the party in power at the Centre, it must give the legitimate tax shares to the state governments.

Reacting to the BJP leaders’ remarks on the state government with regard to the Centre’s grants to Telangana, he said that for the past five years the state had received only `10,000 crores from the Centre.

He said he had demanded an apology from Union home minister Amit Shah for misleading the people with the false figures of tax devolution.

When the Congress was in power at the Centre, it was always misleading the people and vexed with the Congress, the people had given a mandate to the BJP. But, unfortunately, the BJP is also behaving just like the Congress.

Stating that there are only few states which are feeding the country and Telangana is among the first three, he made it clear that Telangana is the only state in the country which is participating in nation building.

Rao said that though the Centre is getting around `50,000 crore, in return the state government gets not more that `24, 000 crore from it.

Rao also intervened a second time when health minister Etala Rajender replying to the allegations of Congress legislature party leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka of a scam in selling maize stocks to the poultry industry at subsidised prices.

Making it clear that there was no scam in it, Rao said that to support the poultry industry, the government has given incentives in purchasing the maize stocks from Markfed and that that was a perfectly legitimate thing to do.

● WHILE INTERVENING when finance minister T. Harish Rao was replying to the discussion on the Budget 2020-21, he alleged that the BJP government has been misusing its power which he had achieved after a prolonged political struggle.

● MAINTAING THAT in the Constitution, the procedure for tax collection and its devolution was clearly derived, he said that devolution is not a charity and it is a constitutional right of the state government.

● WHICHEVER PARTY is at the Centre, it must give legitimate tax to states. Reacting to BJP leaders’ remarks with regard to the Centre’s grants to Telangana, he said that for the past five years the state had received only `10,000 crores from the Centre.