Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Saturday accused the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in Haryana of appeasing e-commerce companies and ruining small shopkeepers by disallowing them to do business during the lockdown.
At a video-conference, Mr. Surjewala said the decision to allow e-commerce services after April 20 would ruin the livelihood of seven crore small shopkeepers, including 10 lakh in Haryana. The “anti-shopkeeper decision” should be reconsidered, he said.
He said the small shopkeepers should be allowed to deliver goods at the doorstep of customers. “This will help to achieve the goal of social distancing, and in reviving the economy.”
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He asked whether the Haryana government would waive off the electricity tariff and commercial house taxes of shopkeepers and exempt them from the Goods and Services Tax (GST).