Amid a threat by the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) to “burn down” all toll stations over its demand for complete of waiver of toll on small vehicles, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday claimed that from midnight of May 31, 2015, road toll tax collection had been stopped at 11 of the 38 PWD toll station and one MSRTC toll station.
On a day when the Maharashtra Congress questioned the need for collecting toll from vehicles in view of the fact that all the major roads in the state are ridden with potholes, Fadnavis came out with a detailed statement on the status of the toll tax collection in the state.
Responding to the MNS chief’s threat that his party activists would ‘burn down’ toll booths if the State Government did not announce a complete waiver of road toll tax on small vehicles in the State, Fadnavis said, “Small vehicles like cars, jeeps and State Transport buses at the remaining 27 (of the 38 run by PWD) and at 26 toll booths of the MSRDC have been exempted from the toll tax since May 31, 2015”
“A decision to pay compensation in this regard was also taken in 2017 and its relevant Government Resolution was issued on Aug. 31, 2017, “ Fadnavis said.
However, Raj contested the Fadnavis’ claim saying that the deputy chief minister’s statement was a “ blatant” lie and reiterated that the MNS men would stand at toll booths and allow small vehicles to pass without paying the toll taxes.
Maintaining that the toll tax is “the biggest scam” in Maharashtra, the MNS chief warned the state government that if the government tried to stop his men, then they would set fire to the concerned toll booths.
Giving a foretaste of their party chief’s threat, the MNS activists swooped on some toll booths in Mumbai, Raigad and other places and allowed small vehicles to cross over without shelling out the toll taxes.
Blaming several past state governments for only paying lip service to the issue of stopping toll, the MNS chief demanded to know why the same companies keep getting the toll collection contract, where the money is going and what is being done with it.
