States in 'dire straits' due to Centre's failure in managing economy: HD Kumaraswamy

Lashing out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government, former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy said that states are in "dire straits" due to the failure of the Centre whose "management of the country's economy is flawed and marked by lack of vision".

"The states are in dire straits due to the failure of the Centre whose management of the country's economy is flawed and marked by lack of vision. Instead of asking the states to borrow from the RBI, the Centre itself should borrow from it and compensate the states for the losses," he tweeted.

In a series of tweets, he attacked the Centre over several issues including GST shortfall and also targetted Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman over her 'an act of God' remark.

"The irresponsible attitude of the Centre in shirking its commitment towards GST shortfall of the states is condemnable. It has dealt a blow to the federal structure of the country by describing the crisis arising out of COVID-19 pandemic as an unforeseen 'act of God'," Kumaraswamy tweeted.

His response comes a day after Sitharaman referred to COVID-19 pandemic as an "act of God" and said there could be contraction of the economy."This year we are facing an extraordinary situation. We are facing an act of God where we may even see a contraction of the economy," she had said.

Alleging that the Centre has literally ruined the economy of states, the Janata Dal (S) leader asked them to resort to borrowings to make up for GST shortfall and also repay them.

"Long ago, architect of the Indian constitution, Dr BR Ambedkar, had expressed concern that the danger of bringing about legislations that establish control over the states' economy through luring cannot be ruled out in the future. Now, the country is staring at such a danger," he said.

He claimed that states that are in a bad economic condition due to COVID-19 and floods are "cursing" the Centre.

"The Centre has placed two options before states. They can opt for borrowing either the GST shortfall amount of Rs 97,000 crores or borrow the entire revenue gap of Rs 2.35 lakh crore that has arisen due to GST shortfall as well as COVID-19 situation," Kumaraswamy said in another tweet.

"Shocked over such a development, the states are bewildered. What can they do if the Centre causes injustice to them citing COVID-19? The states that are in a bad economic condition due to COVID-19 and floods are cursing the Centre," he added.

On Thursday, Finance Miniter Nirmala Sitharaman chaired the 41st Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council meeting.

The Centre has given two options for compensating states on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) to bridge revenue shortfall as the economy faces a prospect of contraction in current fiscal year due to COVID-19 crisis.

The first option provides a special window to states in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to provide Rs 97,000 crore at a reasonable rate of interest. This money can then be repaid after five years from the collection of cess.

The second option is that the entire GST compensation gap of Rs 2.35 lakh of this year can be met by states in consultation with the RBI.

( With inputs from ANI )