Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle's response to a question from MP Deepak Bohara at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Secretariat meeting: The smuggling ring cannot sleep in the border area, and the common people will not suffer.
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The issue of customs duty (tax) and detention by security personnel when bringing goods worth more than Rs 100 from the Indian border area to Nepal has been raised in the secretariat meeting of the Rashtriya Swatantra Party, which is running the government.
RSP secretariat member and MP Deepak Bohra had questioned Finance Minister and party Vice President Swarnim Wagle about why locals in the border area have to pay customs duty when bringing goods worth more than Rs 100 from India, but why there is a provision for exemption for bringing alcoholic beverages worth thousands from abroad at the airport.
According to a RSP secretariat member, MP Bohra had asked how Finance Minister Wagle would facilitate the matter along with his reply. 'When goods worth more than Rs 100 are brought from India for domestic purposes in the border area, customs duty is levied and the state is detained. But exemption is given for bringing whiskey worth thousands at the airport. How do you facilitate like this?,' Bohara had asked.
Finance Minister Wagle had replied that he would facilitate at the border. 'The smuggler chain cannot sleep at the border. The common man will not suffer,' said Minister Wagle.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) spokesperson Manish Jha said that a discussion was held in the secretariat meeting regarding the customs duty levied on bringing goods from India at the border and the treatment by the state. 'There was a discussion on this issue. The secretariat member asked a question and the minister answered, that's all I said,' said Jha.
After the secretariat meeting, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) general secretary and MP Kabindra Burlakoti also said that a discussion was held on the issue of customs duty levied on bringing goods to Nepal from across the border. 'The law says that customs duty is levied on goods brought from across the border, but in practice, it means that exemption is given to bringing household goods. There is now a directive to stop illegal imports. While that directive is being issued, it is an attempt to control those who bring goods worth 1000-2000 rupees for the tenth time in a day and store them in the warehouse,' Burlakoti said, 'Soon it will be easier to bring goods for your own household purposes. Discussions are underway to address the border problem.'
The government is being criticized in various parts of the country for the fact that security personnel are confiscating and collecting customs duties when locals from the Indian border area bring goods worth more than 100 rupees. Locals and political party leaders in the border area are opposing the move.
Similarly, the meeting of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Secretariat has decided to appoint Central Secretariat member and MP Deepak Bohra as the head of the Migration Department. Bohra was appointed after DP Aryal, who was the head of the department, became the Speaker. Spokesperson Jha also informed that the RSVP secretariat meeting decided to assign responsibilities to proportionally elected MPs in constituencies where there are no directly elected MPs.
