New Delhi, Jul 25 (PTI) Opposition parties on Thursday welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision upholding the state legislature’s power to tax mineral rights, and said the ruling will help mineral-rich states.
Asked about the top court ruling, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said, “The issue here was whether the state governments are in a position to impose tax on minerals, and particularly mining for minerals, which for certain states that are rich in minerals, Jharkhand for example, they would gain greatly in revenue.” “As it is, many states are complaining that the Centre is monopolising most of the tax revenues in the country. This way, they will be able to get some benefits. This Supreme Court judgment will go a long way supporting some of these states,” he added.
Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader Sasmit Patra also welcomed the decision, saying states where mining takes place face issues related to pollution, and it is only fair to allow them to levy taxes.
“We welcome the Supreme Court judgment. Our former chief minister Naveen Patnaik had said repeatedly if Odisha produces coal, the nation gets electricity. Similarly, states which have minerals, who face water and air pollution due to mining, there should be a green tax, which was never allowed by the Centre,” he said.
“We demanded that the coal royalty be revised. It has been 12 years, it has not been revised. This decision of the SC that states also have the right to levy tax on minerals is a good step,” Patra added.
The Supreme Court on Thursday held that royalty payable on minerals is not a tax and states have the legislative competence to impose taxes on mines and minerals-bearing lands.
The verdict will give a boost to mineral-rich states like Jharkhand and Odisha as they urged the top court to decide on recovery of taxes worth thousands of crores rupees levied by the Centre on mines and minerals till now. PTI AO AO IJT IJT
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