Left wants govt to drop SEZ tax sops

RUN-UP TO THE BUDGET 2008-09

In their wish list for the Union Budget, the Left parties have demanded that the UPA government do away with the "exorbitant" tax concessions to Special Economic Zones (SEZ).

They have also asked the government to reintroduce long-term capital gains tax while increasing the rate of short-term capital gains tax.

The Left, critical of the government's handling of the stock market, feels this "will correct the anomaly in the taxation structure, which has led to inflow of speculative capital in the stock market, causing high volatility. The rate of the Securities Transaction Tax should also be increased."

"The initial efforts undertaken to do away with the myriad tax concessions, especially those enjoyed by corporates, have not gone anywhere. The UPA government is yet to amend the SEZ Act according to the recommendations of the Standing Committee on Commerce, doing away with the exorbitant tax concessions in SEZs. This should be done without further delay and other corporate tax concessions curbed," the four Left parties said after their meeting.

While asking the government to impose more taxes on the rich, the Left wants the 2008-09 Budget to focus mainly on the areas of agrarian crisis, unemployment and price rise.