Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has joined his Tamil Nadu counterpart M.K. Stalin in slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “shifting” the blame for the spiralling fuel prices to a “few States”.
At a COVID-19 review meeting on Wednesday, Mr. Modi had singled out the States, including Kerala, for not following the Centre's example and slashing the local levy on fuel to cushion the crippling inflationary fall out of the soaring price of international crude.
Mr. Vijayan said Mr. Modi's remarks went against the grain of the founding principle of cooperative federalism, wherein the country's progress depended upon the active collaboration of the Centre and State.
He said the core constitutional doctrine underscored the fiscal and jurisdictional independence of Union and State governments in their respective spheres.
Mr. Vijayan pointed out that Kerala had not increased the local tax on petroleum products, a significant source of State revenue since the adoption of the GST regime, even once in six years.
In contrast, the Centre had hiked fuel tax 14 times since 2014 and reduced it nominally on four occasions.
The States did not benefit from the Centre's sizeable cess on fuel. The revenue was for the Centre alone and not channelled to the divisive pool.
“Kerala is being criticised at an inopportune moment. It should not have come from the Prime Minister. He is well aware of the dire financial situation faced by the States,” Mr. Vijayan said.
Kerala had not reduced its welfare and developmental push despite the Centre's delay in disbursing GST compensation and whittling away at the revenue share of the States.
Kerala had offered free COVID-19 medical care and expanded the social welfare net. “The State bore the lion’s share of the expenses,” he said.
Mr. Vijayan said the implication that the responsibility for the fuel price rise lay on the States and not on the Centre ran against the spirit of federalism. "It should not have happened within a federal system".
The Chief Minister urged the Centre to reduce fuel prices to curb inflation and spare citizens from misery.
“The sufferings of the people caused by the spiralling fuel prices cannot be alleviated by unreasonably blaming the States,” Mr. Vijayan said, echoing Mr. Stalin's sentiment on the Centre-State row.
