By IANS
Lucknow : Traders in Uttar Pradesh observed a near total strike Tuesday to protest proposed introduction of value added tax (VAT) in the state, fearing the new taxation will eat into their profits.
Several traders’ organisations joined hands to oppose VAT, which has not been implemented in the state so far, even as most other Indian states have already switched over to it as a modern substitute for trade-related taxes.
However, the newly opened malls refused to join the protest. Each of the three malls in the state capital remained open and did brisk business.
Over 1,000 traders marched in a procession down the city’s main thoroughfare carrying an ‘effigy’ of VAT. However, cops prevented them when they tried to burn the effigy at the main Hazratganj crossing where the rally culminated.
The protesters dispersed after the rally, threatening to intensify the stir if the Mayawati government persisted in introducing VAT.
Traders aligned with the opposition Samajwadi Party as well as those linked with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were united on the issue.
Banwari Lal Kanchal, chief of the Uttar Pradesh Udyog Vyapar Mandal that is associated with the Samajwadi Party, swore to oppose VAT tooth and nail.
Sandeep Bansal, heading a traders’ body aligned with the BJP, told media persons, “we are opposed to VAT but would not like to take any extreme step to press our demand.”
In this state capital, the shutdown was total – even eating joints kept their shutters down. However, reports from other cities and towns described the overall impact of the strike call as partial.
Many shops had remained open in major cities like Agra, Meerut, Kanpur and Varanasi, the reports said.
For chemist shops in the state, it was the second consecutive day of closure as they Monday protested the previous week’s arrest of some chemists caught for allegedly dealing in spurious medicines.