Trinamul Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, during his speech in Parliament had taken a hard stand on the Union Budget presented by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
In a post on his X-handle, Abhishek thanked the FM for listening to his speech on the Budget. At the same time, he also wished that she should also listen to the demands of the people of the state about their pending dues.
“I thank Hon’ble Finance Minister @nsitharaman for so carefully listening to my speech. Though I wish she’d listen as carefully to the people of Bengal when they ask for their MGNREGA, PMAY, PMGSY and JJM dues. The Finance Minister says I ‘twisted facts.’ Let me untwist them for her.
“She’s absolutely right, there’s no GST on fresh liquid milk. But perhaps she hasn’t seen the mother who can’t afford fresh milk, who stretches her budget by mixing powdered milk for her infant. That powdered milk? 5% GST. Zero tax on what she can’t buy, 5% tax on what she’s forced to buy.
“She’s correct again, textbooks have no GST. But the graph paper a student uses for his/her math assignment? 12% GST. The laboratory notebook for the science practical? 12% GST. The crayons for the drawing class? 12% GST.
“On healthcare, she’s technically accurate as always; consultation and treatment are GST-free. But the oxygen cylinder that keeps a COVID patient alive? 12% GST. The insulin injection that prevents a diabetic from dying? 5% GST. The anesthesia for the surgery? 12% GST.
“And yes, funeral services are exempt. But the agarbatti we light for our departed? 5% GST. EVEN GRIEF HAS A PRICE TAG IN ‘NEW INDIA.’
“This, Honourable Finance Minister, is EXACTLY the problem I was highlighting. Until you understand the difference between what’s written in the GST Act and what’s written on a poor family’s grocery bill, you’ll keep living in your India while we live in ours. Thank you for proving my point better than I ever could,” he wrote on X.