Shimla, Sept. 25 -- Welcoming the recent reforms in Goods and Services Tax (GST), chief minister's principal media advisor Naresh Chauhan on Wednesday said that the Centre must accept responsibility for exploiting the poor and middle-class through excessive taxation since its implementation in 2017.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Chauhan said that from 2017 to 2025, the citizens, especially the poor and middle class, were heavily burdened with taxes even on essential items like pulses, food, and clothing. He alleged that through this, the Centre collected more than Rs.55 lakh crore in the past eight years and now must seek an apology from the people of the country.

He said that Congress from the very beginning termed G...