Former revenue minister R Ashoka
Credit: DH Photo
Lashing out at the state government’s decision to increase guidance values of properties, former revenue minister R Ashoka on Thursday said this showed that the exchequer had become empty because of the ruling party’s decision to implement its five
guarantees.
Guidance value is the base price on which property transactions have to take place. A hike in that, in turn, increases revenue to the government.
Ashoka told reporters that though the government was claiming that it has increased guidance value between 25% and 30%, in reality, it is working out to be anywhere between 30% and 70%.
“Such a quantum of hike is nothing but loot by this government. This shows that the exchequer is empty due to implementation of the guarantees,” he alleged.
Ashoka said the previous BJP government was “people-friendly” as it had reduced guidance value by 10% in order to help people recover from the two-year-long Covid crisis.
“The Congress government which came to power claiming to be common man-friendly by announcing five guarantees effected a steep power tariff hike. Now, it has decided to raise guidance value by up to 70%,” he said.
Ashoka sarcastically remarked that the Congress government had ‘no guarantee’ of governing the state without increasing
prices.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has ‘no guarantee’ of completing his second term in office, while there is absolutely ‘no guarantee’ of his deputy D K Shivakumar becoming chief after two and half
years.
“The Congress is spending most of its time in finding ways and means to burden the common people by increasing taxes and levies to fill the coffers,” the former minister said.