india-bloc-stages-protest-over-gst-on-insurance-premiums

INDIA bloc protested outside Parliament on Tuesday, demanding the withdrawal of 18% Goods and Services Tax (GST) on life and health insurance premiums. Opposition MPs from various parties, including the Trinamool Congress, Congress, AAP, and NCP (SC), staged a protest carrying placards reading "Tax terrorism" and raised slogans against the imposition.

 

The protest was supported by senior leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, who referred to the GST as "extortion" and a "severe blow" to the middle class. Rahul Gandhi, LoP, condemned the government's "opportunistic thinking" in seeking to tax people's misfortunes. 

 

In a post in Hindi on X, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, "Today in the Parliament premises, INDIA parties demanded immediate removal of 18% GST on health and life insurance premiums as this extortion is a severe blow to our people, especially the middle class." 

 

"The middle class is already struggling under the burden of the Modi government's tax collection policies. India's medical inflation rate is the highest in Asia in 2024 - at 14%! On top of that, this 'Gabbar Singh Tax' on life insurance and health insurance is inhuman, and another condemnable example of BJP's policy of plundering from 'opportunity in disaster'," Kharge said.

 

In a post in Hindi on X, Rahul Gandhi said, "The Modi government even collected Rs 24,000 crore from millions of common Indians who pay health insurance premiums every year by saving every penny to ensure that they do not have to bow down to anyone in case of a 'health crisis' in life. Looking for a 'tax opportunity' in every disaster is proof of the insensitive thinking of the BJP government. INDIA Alliance opposes this opportunistic thinking. Health and life insurance must be made GST-free". 

 

Shashi Tharoor, a senior Congress leader, pointed out that India already has the highest out-of-pocket expenses for health crises globally, and the GST would make insurance unaffordable for most. He questioned the government's commitment to achieving "insurance for all by 2047".

 

"India is already the country whose citizens pay the highest out-of-pocket expenses for health crises in the world. Senior citizens who have taken health insurance are now paying the highest GST rates in the world. How does the government intend to attain the goal of 'insurance for all by 2047', when it is instead ensuring the unaffordability of insurance to most?" Tharoor said on X.

 

The issue has been raised in Parliament by Trinamool Congress MPs, and party president Mamata Banerjee has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Notably, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has also urged Sitharaman to consider withdrawing the GST, describing it as a tax on life's uncertainties that restricts industry growth.

 

The protest highlights the growing opposition to the GST on life and health insurance premiums, with many arguing it disproportionately affects the middle class and undermines the goal of universal insurance coverage.