Tax waiver for IPL,its cheerleaders hit BJP resistance

The party has also opposed the use of cheerleaders during these matches.

In a letter to Chief Minister Ashok Chavan,BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari has also demanded that a ceiling on the prices of the tickets sold for the cricket matches and necessary instructions should be given to the concerned by the state government.

He said that while NCP president and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar was BCCI chief,entertainment tax waiver had caused the state a loss of Rs 125 crore instead of benefiting it.

Subscriber Only Stories

View All

Premium

Nitish-BJP break-up in Bihar: Why Modi’s BJP is right to be nervous...

Premium

UPSC Key-August 9, 2022: Why you should read ‘Eggs and faith’ or ‘Transge...

Premium

Streetwise Kolkata – Beckbagan: Named after an emissary from Awadh ...

Premium

As PM Modi again refers to Rajya Sabha ‘hurdle’, some House truths

Subscribe Now to get 66% OFF

This could have benefited the state taking into consideration the economic crisis,power shortage and drought like situation.

Bhandari said that IPL matches held in Mumbai last year were given entertainment tax waiver by the state government,and claimed that this had been done suo moto by the government without the IPL having demanded so.

Bhandari said that last year,no state except Maharashtra had waived the entertainment tax. Several states like Punjab and West Bengal had recovered the entire expenditure incurred on the security arrangements. He stressed that there was no need to provide any kind of incentives to the IPL when the state was facing financial crisis.

Pointing out that the use of cheer girls in matches last year had become controversial,Bhandari questioned the display of few women to cheer the players when thousands of spectators watching the match were already doing so and requested Chavan to ensure that these cheer girls were not there in the matches held in Maharashtra.

Bhandari said that while spectators were restricted from taking water or eatables inside the stadium on the pretext of security,the stadium contractors sold the foodstuff and water at exorbitant prices. He also sought the state to issue instructions to the organisers in this regard.

Pramod Mahajan’s statue in Andhra
A bronze statue of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan will be unveiled at his birthplace Mehboob Nagar in Andhra Pradesh on February 28. The programme is being organised by the Andhra Pradesh BJP.