GST rates cut with eye on elections: Chidambaram
New Delhi, July 22 : Former Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Sunday said that the decision to slash GST rates on 100 mass-use items was taken keeping upcoming assembly elections in mind.
"When elections are around the corner, government cuts rates. I suppose that makes a good case for frequent elections in different state!" he said on Twitter.
Terming the decision "belated wisdom", he questioned why it was not taken earlier.
"GST Council cuts rates on 100 items, approves quarterly returns. Belated wisdom. Why did Government not follow our advice in July 2017?" he said.
Assembly elections are due in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram later this year.
The GST Council on Saturday reduced tax rates on a slew of items including refrigerators, washing machines and small televisions from 28 per cent to 18 per cent, and cleared widely demanded exemption on sanitary pads.
The Congress leader also called the present GST regime "unreformed" and filled with "lacunae", and pitched for immediate implementation of three-rates structure."
"The present GST is still 'unreformed'. Government must notify three rates immediately and signal its intention to move to a single rate in the medium term. That will be true GST.
"There are many other lacunae in the GST law. I doubt if the government has the will or the skill to remove these lacunae."
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Badlapur accused Akshay Shinde shot dead: Lawyer of minor girls calls it 'killing of justice'
Mumbai (PTI): The gunning down of Badlapur case accused Akshay Shinde on Monday was the "killing of justice", said Asim Sarode, lawyer for the two minor girls he allegedly sexually assaulted.
Shinde was killed near Mumbra Bypass around 6:15pm when he allegedly snatched the gun of a policeman while he was being ferried in a police vehicle as part of a probe into a case registered on the complaint of his former wife.
After he shot and injured an API, another personnel from the escort team fired at him, and he was declared dead by doctors at a nearby hospital.
"While representing the two minor girls, I noticed it was becoming uncomfortable for the local politics of the Thane district and even for the educational institution where Akshay Shinde was working. Shinde's death in such a manner is killing of justice," Sarode told a regional news channel.
"Now, the case of sexual assault of the two minor girls will get sidelined. The case of these two minor girls was becoming difficult for the educational institute, as it is affiliated with a certain political family. Such a practice would lower the confidence of people in police and the judiciary," he claimed.
Sarode said he will be filing a plea before the Bombay High Court demanding thorough inquiry into the firing incident.
"Shinde's case could have brought up certain aspects that would have been negative politically for the government. I wonder how Shinde could access the gun and how he could unlock it when his hands were tied. This is political murder and is absolutely wrong," he said.
