Finance Minister Atishi addressing mediapersons in Delhi on Friday. | Photo Credit: SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP
Finance Minister Atishi on Friday urged the Centre to provide ₹10,000 crore for infrastructure development in the national capital in the upcoming Union Budget.
She said Delhi did not receive “even one rupee” out of the ₹2.32 lakh crore the city dwellers paid in taxes to the Central government last year, even as other States received significant returns for their tax collection.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to present the Budget on July 23.
Attacking the Minister, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva said, “During the pandemic, the Kejriwal government spent ₹55 crore on building a palace for the Chief Minister while the Central government spent over ₹10,000 crore on temporary hospitals and medical facilities for the people of Delhi.” He accused Ms. Atishi of misleading people.
‘Highest taxpayer’
Addressing a press conference, the Delhi Finance Minister said, “Maharashtra government got ₹54,000 crore in return for the ₹5 lakh crore income tax paid by Mumbai to the Centre. Karnataka government received ₹33,000 crore share in taxes against ₹2 lakh crore income tax contributed by Bengaluru.”
She added that last year, Delhi residents paid ₹2.07 lakh crore in income tax and an additional ₹25,000 crore in GST. However, despite being one of the highest taxpayers, the city did not receive anything in return from the Centre.
‘Did development works’
Ms. Atishi said last year the Delhi government received ₹35,000 crore in taxes, such as the SGST and VAT, which was used to fund various schemes and development works.
She said the money was used to provide free electricity to people, quality education to children, and to expand the potable water network to unauthorised colonies.
Lashing out at the Finance Minister, Mr. Sachdeva said it was “shameful” that Ms. Atishi “hid the fact” that the Central government spends more than ₹11,000 crore each year only on the Delhi police. “The AAP government tries to mislead the people of Delhi every year by issuing the same old statement. But it has never been able to mislead them before, and it will not be able to do so today either,” he added.
