A chapter of buns put the BJP in a pickle

Creamy bread for sale at Annapoorna store in Coimbatore in Coimbatore on September 14, 2024. | Image Credit: The Hindu

Eight months ago, there was a controversy in Tamil Nadu over a movie called Annapoorani. It shows the protagonist, a Brahmin woman, fighting against her beliefs to become India’s top chef. In one scene, he learns how to prepare a meat dish. Some right-wing groups claimed that the scene “hurts” the religious sentiments of the Hindu community, especially the Brahmins.

Over the past week, a new controversy hit the headlines in the State, this time over Annapoorna, a popular chain of vegetarian restaurants, known as the ‘pride of Coimbatore’. It is also centered around food.

On September 11, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman visited Coimbatore to attend several events, including a meeting with industry representatives. During the interaction, D. Srinivasan, managing director of Hotel Sree Annapoorna Sree Gowri Shankar in Coimbatore, raised the issue of different GST rates on food by giving an illustration. He said, while no tax is imposed on ordinary bread, adding the cream is taxed at 18%. He added in a joke that customers at the hotel asked only for bread, saying they would add their own cream.

This was not the only thing that Mr. Srinivasan talked about during the meeting. However, only a part of his speech went viral on social media. In the clip, he is heard saying that Coimbatore BJP MLA (South), Vanathi Srinivasan, who was also present at the event, is a regular customer and talking about his food choices.

The manner in which Mr. Srinivasan highlighted the issue of taxation, as reflected on social media, put the Finance Minister and MLAs in an embarrassing position. Meanwhile, some BJP supporters wondered whether anyone who raised similar issues with the ruling DMK Minister would be allowed to go scot-free.

The next day, Mrs. Sitharaman told the media in Coimbatore that the Group of Ministers is examining the demand of the hotel industry regarding GST on various food items and will make recommendations. He also responded to complaints from several States that they did not get due to GST collection. He said the collection is shared between the Union and State governments. In addition, the Center gives 41% of divisible tax to the United States, he said.

The matter can be laid to rest with this. However, BJP’s image became a hit when another video clip surfaced in which Mr. Srinivasan was seen apologizing to Ms. Sitharaman in a private meeting. Mrs. Vanathi Srinivasan was also present in this conversation. While this apology also spread, the opposition slammed the BJP, especially the Finance Minister, for showing “arrogance of power” and “intimidating people who ask questions.” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi; Deputy general secretary DMK of the Lok Sabha, Kanimozhi Karunanidhi; AIADMK organizational secretary, D. Jayakumar; and Tamil Nadu Congress Committee chairman K. Selvaperunthagai criticized the BJP. Chief Minister MK Stalin, who returned to Chennai on Friday after a three-week visit to the US to seek industrial investment, said that the way Ms. Sitharaman handled the “embarrassing” episode.

The BJP legislator insisted that his party had no role in Mr Srinivasan’s apology. He refuted the criticism of Mr. Stalin who said that Mrs. Sitharaman had solved the problems of the industry without the help of the State government. The BJP MP added that while he could have disputed Mr Srinivasan’s account of himself publicly, he did not do so to remain polite.

Then, in a surprise, BJP State president, K. Annamalai, who is in England on sabbatical, wrote in X, expressing his “sincere apologies” for what his colleagues did, that is, showing in public a private conversation between Ms. . . Sitharaman and Mr. Srinivasan. On September 14, the restaurant chain issued a statement saying that top executives had “voluntarily” met with Ms Sitharaman to allay her misgivings.

The episode shows that the Union government has a long way to go to sensitize people about the system regarding GST and that the Centre, despite being a key player in the decision-making process is not the sole authority to decide on taxes.