Even though not necessary, Telangana Rashtra Samiti had taken the ambitions of BJP seriously. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao himself entered the fray and attacked BJP President Amit Shah and called him names. Now, BJP had played itself into the hands of TRS.
In the proposed GST regime, Beedi Leaves are put in 18% Slab and Beedis are put under 28% Slab despite the requests of the Telangana Government. There is a major population depending on Beedi industry in Telangana. Also, the demand of handlooms to be exempt from GST is not accepted.
Telangana Finance Minister Eetela Rajendra already pressed the pedal saying that Center refused to listen to the anguish of the state. TRS has planned to corner BJP using this as Beedi Workers and Handloom workers form a significant chunk of the electorate in Telangana.
GST is deemed as the biggest reform in India since the Independence. But the transition is not going to be easy and especially the first couple of years will be tough. Some even say that mishandling GST like Demonetization may even emerge as the biggest threat to BJP in the upcoming election.
