Kerala warns of tit-for-tat move during Sabarimala season after TN stops KSRTC buses
"If our people are troubled, we will trouble their people visiting Kerala. Don’t forget that Sabarimala season is coming up," Kerala Transport Minister Ganesh Kumar said
Kerala has warned Tamil Nadu of a tit-for-tat move after the latter imposed restrictions on non-state buses picking up passengers at various locations in the state.
The move from the Tamil Nadu government to stop buses from other states including Kerala comes despite the Supreme Court on Tuesday (June 25) asking it to allow all buses with All India Tourist Permit (AITP) to pass through the state without any hindrance or obstruction.
The Tamil Nadu government has imposed restrictions on buses that are not registered in the state. Tamil Nadu Transport Minister S S Sivasankar said such buses were causing financial loss to the state. The state was losing out a revenue of nearly Rs 4.32 lakh per bus per year, the minister claimed.
On June 13, Sivasankar had said that tourist and omni buses registered in other states would not be allowed to operate in Tamil Nadu from June 14. He had asked such vehicles to re-register in the state.
Reacting strongly to Tamil Nadu’s move, Kerala Transport Minister K B Ganesh Kumar said in the state Assembly that they would stop Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) from entering the state if it continues to ban Kerala State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses from passing through Tamil Nadu.
Kumar also lashed out at the Tamil Nadu government for imposing Rs 4,000 green tax quarterly for tourist vehicles with all India permit entering the state. The minister warned of a tit for tat tax move for Tamil Nadu and also claimed that KSRTC buses were seized in Tamil Nadu.
“If our people are troubled, we will trouble their people visiting Kerala. Don’t forget that Sabarimala season is coming up. Most devotees come from Tamil Nadu. We will fill up our treasury,” Kumar said in the Assembly, according to reports.
“The Centre is saying, it is the same tax across the country. We are on good terms, but Tamil Nadu did not even discuss with us when they increased the amount per seat on a bus by Rs 4,000,” he added.
Meanwhile, a report in Deccan Herald said that a Thiruvananthapuram-bound bus from Bengaluru was stopped in Tamil Nadu’s Salem last week.