News and Pics: Silvester D' Souza

Daijiworld Media Network – Kundapur (EP)

Kundapur, Feb 10: Kundapur taluk Jeweller’s association held protest rally and submitted a memorandum to the government department official on February 10 urging to withdraw the order of the union ministry of finance which has made submission of PAN card details for gold purchases exceeding Rs two lacs mandatory.

The protesters who walked in protest rally from Kundapur Shastri circle submitted a memorandum to Ashwathi, sub section officer at Mini Vidhana Saudha and urged for a solution for the problem. The association leaders who spoke on the occasion, said that only 14% citizens hold Pan cards out of twenty two and a half crore people. "The remaining 86% people do not have Pan cards. The people in villages are not rich. The government should understand that their sources of income cannot be calculated when they collect money from other sources during wedding and other programmes. In these circumstances the insistence of Pan card for purchases exceeding Rs two lacs is not justifiable", they said.

The protesters expressed anguish saying that a daily wage worker when getting his daughter married, being once in a lifetime will naturally like to buy jewellery for her. “However the order from the ministry of finance has snatched the right of the poor. Just in case if the ministry is bent upon bringing the rule, let them create awareness about it among the working class and allow sufficient time for its implementation, they said.

Jagadish Rao, Abharana Jewellers manager and workers, Jeweller’s association president Rajashekar Acharya, secretary Jagadish Rao, Vice president Ramprasad and Prashanth Daivajnya, Ganesh Shetty Molahalli from Gold jewellers, Navin Shetty of Nakshatra jewellers, Panneer Selvan of Panneer Jewellers, workers and owners of other Jewellery shops were present.