‘Arrogance’: Cong slams Govt over video of restaurant chain owner ‘apologizing’ to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

BJP faces flak for sharing video of Sree Annapoorna MD apologizing to FM Sitharaman for GST remarks

The Congress on Friday blamed the government over a video of a restaurant chain owner purportedly “apologizing” to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for voicing concerns about GST, with Rahul Gandhi saying “fragile egos” only deliver humiliation. The opposition party also demanded an apology from the Finance Minister over the issue.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge hit out at Sitharaman, saying the “disgraceful humiliation” of the owner of Sree Annapoorna restaurant chain smacks of “arrogance of power” and the minister “has been a repeat offender in such public interactions”. Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai said that on behalf of the party’s state unit, he sincerely apologizes for the actions of “our functionaries who shared a private conversation between a respected business owner and the finance minister”.

“I spoke with Thiru Srinivasan Avl, the esteemed owner of the Annapoorna chain of Restaurants, to express regret for this unintended breach of privacy. Annapoorna Srinivasan Anna is a pillar of Tamil Nadu’s business community, contributing significantly to the state’s and nation’s economic growth. I request everyone to lay the matter to rest with due respect,” Annamalai said.

Hitting out at the government, Kharge said it follows the policy of “tax terror” for the poor and middle class and “tax cuts” for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “crony friends”. “The owner asked a genuine question about the Modi government’s flawed GST and was first met with a condescending laugh by the FM and later forced to apologize to her on camera. MSMEs and Small Business owners are suffering the brunt of the Modi government’s repeated financial assaults in the form of a flawed GST and demonetization,” Kharge said in a post on X, adding that the BJP is only committed to benefit Modi’s large “crony friends”.

“From Day 1, the Congress party has been saying that we need a simple, uniform, moderate, and rational GST on essential items. In our 2024 Manifesto, we said, ‘Congress will replace the GST laws enacted by the BJP/NDA government with GST 2.0. The new GST regime will be based on the universally accepted principle that GST shall be a single, moderate rate (with a few exceptions) that will not burden the poor,” Kharge said. The Congress is strongly committed to this, he added.

The BJP’s “loot small owners and shoot the messenger” policy spells a disaster for the nation’s economy, Kharge said. Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi also slammed the government over the issue and said that when the “fragile egos” of those in power are hurt, it seems humiliation is what they will deliver.

In a post on X, Gandhi said when the owner of a small business, like Annapoorna restaurant in Coimbatore, asks public servants for a simplified GST regime, his request is met with “arrogance and outright disrespect”.

“Yet, when a billionaire friend seeks to bend the rules, change the laws, or acquire national assets, Modi Ji rolls out the red carpet,” he alleged. “Our small business owners have already endured the blows of demonetization, an inaccessible banking system, tax extortion, and a disastrous GST. The last thing they deserve is further humiliation,” Gandhi said. But when the fragile egos of those in power are hurt, it seems humiliation is exactly what they will deliver, the former Congress chief said.

“If this arrogant government would listen to the people they would understand that a simplified GST with a single tax rate would solve the problems of lakhs of businesses,” Gandhi said.

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