Sanchit Goyal, a category manager at Flipkart, finds himself working 12-hour days but sees the payoff being too little for his toil. He said his hard work seems to be overshadowed by the hefty tax burdens. On July 18, Goyal took to Twitter to express his frustration over the high taxes he pays on his earnings and spendings.
Goyal's tweet, which garnered huge traction, read, "Today I earned Rs 5,000. I had to give 30 percent to the government as tax." He further lamented about the additional 28 percent tax he had to pay when buying caffeinated beverages from his remaining income. His frustration was palpable as he stated, "I realised I am working 12 hrs a day just to pay more than 50 percent of my income to the government."
His sentiments resonated with many Twitter users who shared similar frustrations. One user commented on the misuse of tax revenue, stating that a significant portion goes towards salaries, pensions of government employees, and unnecessary freebies rather than building infrastructure.
Tax earned by Government on Rs 20 choco-bar: 18% GST by end customer - Rs 3.6 Calculated on unit economics- 18% on Sugar - Rs 0.36 18% on Cocoa - Rs 0.9 12% on Condensed Milk - Rs 0.6 5% on Cream - 0.1 Total #GST earned - Rs 5.5 which is close to 27.5% of the final cost.#tax
"And your blood boils when you know that a great portion of tax revenue is going towards salaries, pensions of government employees, and unnecessary freebies rather than building infrastructure," commented a user.
The conversation took a turn when another user pointed out the even worse situation for those wanting to play online casino games, referring to the Centre's decision to impose a 28 per cent tax on funds that online gaming companies collect from their customers.
Goyal responded, highlighting the unfairness of the situation where he bears all the risk but still has to pay taxes.
Another Twitter user wrote, "This situation will be even worse if you want to play casino." To this, Goyal replied, "I know. The entire risk is mine still I have to pay taxes. Either the government bears the risk with me. If I win I have to pay taxes, if I lose, it's my loss completely."
"Earn money from agriculture and drink tender coconut water. 0 tax," a third user commented.
Meanwhile, Flipkart, owned by Walmart, has announced that it will distribute ESOPs worth $700 million to 19,000 employees, marking a significant instance of wealth creation at the company.
Also Read: 'Chak de, INDIA': Opposition alliance named as Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance