KTR slams govt for imposing road safety cess on vehicle buyers

BRS working president KT Rama Rao criticised the Congress government for imposing a road safety cess of Rs 2,000 to Rs 10,000 on new vehicle buyers. Calling it anti-people and deceptive, he demanded its immediate withdrawal and accused the state of financial mismanagement

Hyderabad: Demanding that the State government immediately scrap the road safety cess levied on vehicle buyers, BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Saturday called it a “conspiracy” against the common man.

Describing it as an anti-people cess that has burdened new vehicle buyers with additional costs ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 10,000, he said in a post on the social media platform X that it was a deceptive move to plug revenue shortfalls caused by the government’s flawed policies.

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He criticised the government for failing to implement the Supreme Court’s directives on road safety by allocating funds from the state budget, instead choosing to “dump the burden” on ordinary citizens. He called it a “heinous act” to impose such costs on people who purchase vehicles by saving money or taking loans. He accused the government of exploiting the public to cover its financial mismanagement.

The BRS leader further alleged that the state’s “reckless policies” have damaged its revenue streams, leading to this cess as a means to collect an estimated Rs 270 crore from citizens. He warned that the Congress government’s failure to honour its guarantees over the past two years, coupled with this “extortionist” policy, would not be forgiven by the public. (EOM)