The Nepali Congress has expressed serious concern over the imposition of customs duty on goods priced above Rs 100 in the Indian border areas. Congress spokesperson Devaraj Chalise criticized the decision as anti-people, impractical, and insensitive. He stated, “Such policies or government behaviors are not only anti-people and impractical but also add to the burdens on citizens amidst the current economic crisis.”
The Congress has also presented five demands to the government, emphasizing that additional charges on petroleum products will institutionalize poverty further. Chalise explained that, due to the open border, residents in the border areas have been sustaining themselves by purchasing daily necessities from India at cheaper prices. This decision has directly impacted millions of common people, daily wage workers, small farmers, and low-income families, particularly in the Madhesh Province.
Given the already high prices of petroleum products, charging extra fees on purchases ranging from Rs 200 to Rs 300 negatively affects people’s purchasing power and represents a policy that institutionalizes poverty, stated the Congress in opposition to the measure. The party stressed that the government must urgently address and fulfill these five demands.
