When Khakra took Twitter by storm, netizens take on GST reduction for "Gujarati food"

The GST on many items including non-branded readymade snacks.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday announced changes made to the GST rates of certain goods. What found prominence among netizens was undoubtedly Khakra, whose GST was reduced from 12 per cent to 5 per cent. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government's move to purportedly woo all things Gujarati was highlighted on social media with 'Khakra' the medium by storm.

While the Union Minister announced GST cut on various things including Mangoes sliced dried, Khakra and plain chapati or roti, Food preparations put up in unit containers and intended for free distribution to economically weaker sections of the society under a programme duly approved by the Central Government or any State Government, Khakra went on to become netizens' favourite.

Memes, GIFs on Khakras have been flooding social media timelines since the announcement on Friday. While many tweets were in good jest, netizens also raised pertinent questions over commodities that should have been considered for a GST cut. For days the country witnessed protests and backlash demanding rollback of GST on sanitary aides. This time around too, netizens made it a point to hightlight that essential commodities were not being given relief.

The "Why not other foods?" question became the most common. Many people also highlighted how the efforts of the government seemed to be intended towards wooing the Gujarati community than providing largescale relief to citizens across the country. The fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an urgent meeting with BJP national President Amit Shah and Union minister Arun Jaitley a day prior to the GST council added to the criticism.

Many attempted to look at the brighter side of GST reduction of Khakra, calling it a 'huge relief for those in the business of manufacturing Khakra'. Tweets oozed mockery, sarcasm and some genuine appreciation for the government's move.

Elections are around the corner in Gujarat and netizens made it a point to highlight how evident the government had made its attempt to appeal to the state and its voters. Gujarat has been seeing huge protests against the GST threatening to dent the BJP's prospects. Friday's GST changes bring much needed relief to small traders- a huge chunk of Gujarati voters.

OneIndia News