Congress seeks 50% relief in property tax

Congress leader D K Shivakumar at a rally on his arrival in Bengaluru

BENGALURU: The Congress held a protest on Monday against the various fees and cesses of the state government and the tax policy of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). Led by State party president D K Shivakumar, former general secretary B K Hariprasad, former minister R Ramalinga Reddy, MLA Soumya Reddy and others, the party members marched from the Mysuru Bank Circle to the BBMP headquarters, asking for 50 per cent relief in property tax due to the hardships that the people are facing in these Covid times.

They also demanded that the government withdraw its proposal to collect Rs 200 from each house for garbage collection and roll back the road transport cess of 2 per cent.The Congress urged the government to release Rs 3,000 crore that the government owes to contractors and which has not been paid for the past 24 months. They claimed that the building construction fee, which was three times higher compared to other cities, should also be withdrawn.

The leaders said that instead of burdening the people with taxes, the government should give financial assistance, especially to those who have lost a family member due to Covid-19 and even support those who had become invalids due to the pandemic. The government should order an inquiry into irregularities in the purchase of Covid equipment, sanitizers and masks, they demanded.