Congress asks Amitabh to withdraw from GST ad

In a development ahead of the 1 July roll out of Goods and Services Tax (GST), the Congress on Wednesday requested Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan to withdraw as the brand ambassador of the new tax regime in India.

Senior Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam tweeted and later spoke to media persons saying that Bachchan is being used by the government.

Both, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley know that the government is not ready nor does it have the infrastructure to roll out GST, he said. “That's why it is using a legend like Amitabh Bachchan so that he becomes the fall guy and has to face the brickbats,’’ he added.

Nirupam added that he has the utmost respect for the superstar which is why he wanted to caution him against being used by the government.

Nirupam, who is the President of Mumbai Regional Congress Committee, said: "The idea was one country, one tax but what is being rolled out in one country and at least four taxes. Why are Indians being fooled? And why use an icon and his credibility to fool them?’’

According to the reports, Amitabh Bachchan has responded on social media saying he was asked to do it so he did the ad on GST. A 40-second video released by the government on GST that features the star, sees him explain GST as a unifying force just like the three colours in the national flag. GST is an initiative to create 'one nation, one tax, one market', he says.