Shimla, Dec 31 (IANS): The main Opposition BJP in Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday slammed the Congress-led Shimla Municipal Corporation (MC) for allegedly imposing a Rs 5 fee on men for public toilet use, calling it a burden on the city's residents and tourists.
Party's state media chief Karan Nanda accused Mayor Surinder Chauhan of backtracking on his earlier claims and following Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's footsteps in imposing "anti-people decisions".
The decision on toilet tax comes just less than a three-month row over "toilet seat tax" in urban areas in the cash-strapped government that came with a populist manifesto to woo the electorates in December 2022 Assembly polls.
Addressing the media here, Nanda claimed that despite repeated denials by the Chief Minister, the Mayor has admitted the implementation of the fee.
Highlighting the issue of gender equality raised by the Mayor, Nanda suggested that instead of imposing new charges on the men, the MC should have rolled back the existing Rs 5 fee for women.
He further criticised the Mayor's reference to the High Court's directives, accusing the Congress leaders of hiding behind the judiciary to justify their "dictatorial decisions".
Nanda highlighted past decisions like the aborted luxury tax on cooking utensils in HRTC buses and the registration fee on tree cutting, labelling them as anti-public.
Nanda also accused the Mayor of inconsistency, alleging that he has taken a U-turn on transferring the public toilets' management to Sulabh International. He called for Congress leaders to act responsibly and prioritise public welfare over political gimmicks.
Earlier, there was uproar over reports that people in Himachal Pradesh will now be taxed on the number of toilet seats they have in their homes. However, later Chief Minister Sukhu said that there was no such "toilet tax" in the state.
Reports claimed that the government would impose a Rs 25 tax per toilet seat on residents of urban areas.
Even Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has slammed the Congress for imposing the "toilet seat tax", saying this step would shame the country.