Mysuru: Against the backdrop of a lockdown-like situation in South Interior Karnataka in response to the Bharat Bandh call issued by the Congress, Mysuru’s BJP MP Pratap Simha sought to turn the tables on the ruling alliance in Karnataka, daring chief minister HD Kumaraswamy to reduce state tax on fuel to ease the burden on the common man.Simha was vocal in his criticism of both All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Rahul Gandhi and JD(S) president and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda on Monday. “Rahul is daydreaming of becoming the country’s Prime Minister. These dreams will never come to fruition. But, Deve Gowda, who has such vast experience in national politics should advise his son to reduce the state’s levy on fuel,” Simha said.The MP said that the former PM, instead of endorsing the bandh, must provide valuable suggestions to the central government on ways to reduce the fuel price.Pointing to the hike in the fuel tax imposed by Kumaraswamy in his budget, Simha said, “He increased tax on petrol from 30 to 32%, and tax on diesel from 19% to 21%. But there was no protest against this hike. Both the Congress and JD(S) remained silent when bandhs were called for on the Mahadayi and Cauvery issues. By supporting Congress’ Bharat Bandh call, Kumaraswamy appears to be trying to repay his debt for being made the CM, despite having won only a handful of assembly seats.”However, Simha was quick to jump to the defence of the Centre, which hiked tax on fuel. “The government gets only 6% of the tax amount on fuel, and this is being used to construct highways stretching across thousands of kilometres. But the state government receives 32% of the amount. Let Kumaraswamy reduce the tax on petrol or write to PM Narendra Modi to include real estate, fuel and liquor under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax ( GST ) regime,” he added.Simha sought to draw attention to the decrease in the prices of essential commodities such as sugar, onions, tomatoes, etc, which were expensive during UPA’s tenure. Defending the plummeting value of the rupee against the US dollar, he said, “The Indian currency has reduced by 9%, whereas the value of the Russian Rouble has dropped by 54% and the Brazilian currency by 41%. Even China’s Yuan has fallen by 11%.”Chamaraja MLA L Nagendra, BJP’s Mysuru city president BH Manunath and leader were among those in attendance at the interaction.

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