Liquor ban: BJP contests Nitish claim of no drop in revenue

PATNA: The opposition BJP today contested the claim of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar that there was no drop in state revenue due to liquor ban.

The party also sought to know the reason behind the commercial tax department falling short of its target by Rs 3,500 crore and registration department by Rs 700 crore in the last fiscal.

"The CM should tell if revenue collection has not been hit after liquor ban, then why commercial tax department fell short of achieving its target by Rs 3,500 crore and registration department by Rs 700 crore?" senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi said in a statement here.

"As per the CM's claim, if people bought milk, sweets, readymade garments, sewing machines and other domestic items out of the Rs 10,000 crore saved by them during the last fiscal, then why the target of revenue collection failed?" Sushil Modi asked.

"Despite imposing heavy tax on clothes, sweets and surcharge on petrol/diesel, why did the revenue collection target fall short (in 2016-17)?" he further asked.

Sushil Modi, the Leader of Opposition in the state Legislative Council, was reacting to Nitish Kumar's assertions that revenue collection during the last fiscal was more or less at par with what was in 2015-16, which proved that the liquor ban did not economically harm the state.