New Delhi, Dec 24 (PTI) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the government has given a free hand to monopolies and shackled the small and medium businesses with chains of bureaucracy and flawed policies like wrong GST.

In a post on X, Gandhi shared his conversation with representatives of the Vaish community who are primarily engaged in business and have traditionally been job and wealth creators in the country.

The representatives of the Vaishya community held an extensive business dialogue with the Leader of Opposition, and placed before him the serious challenges currently facing trade and business in India.

"'Our business is on the brink of collapse' -- this anguished cry from the Vaishya community in the business dialogue has truly shaken us to the core. The very community that has historically contributed so much to the nation's economy is now in despair today -- this is a warning bell of danger," Gandhi said in a post on X.

"The government has given free rein to monopolies, and shackled small and medium traders with the chains of bureaucracy and flawed policies like wrong GST. This is not just a policy failure -- it is a direct assault on production, employment, and India's future.

"This is a fight against the feudal mindset of the BJP government. And in this battle, I stand with full strength alongside the Vaishya community, the backbone of the country's trade," Gandhi said.

The business persons who met Gandhi came from a wide range of industries, including footwear manufacturing, agricultural products, industrial electricals, paper and stationery, travel, stone cutting, chemicals and hardware.

Expressing deep concern over the economic policies of the Modi government, the representatives alleged that the policies constitute a direct attack on small traders, MSMEs and India's production-based economy. They asserted that this is not a policy failure but a deliberately designed conspiracy aimed at benefiting a handful of corporate houses while pushing crores of businesses to the brink of ruin.

Rahul Gandhi has warned that a monopoly and duopoly-driven governance model will hollow out India's economy, they said.

During the dialogue, representatives alleged that the GST regime has become an instrument of oppression rather than reform. They said the recent changes to the tax policy were simply a marketing tactic by the BJP govt. GST's impractical and irrational slabs have been deliberately structured to ensure that MSMEs cannot survive.

Rahul Gandhi had earlier dubbed GST as "Gabbar Singh Tax".

A major concern raised by these businesses was the inverted duty structure, which they described as an "eyewash". By increasing GST on raw materials while reducing it on finished products, the government creates an illusion of consumer relief, they said.

The representatives further alleged that "Atmanirbhar Bharat" has proven to be nothing more than a political slogan. In reality, the Modi government has made India more dependent on China than ever before, they said.

They reiterated Rahul Gandhi's repeated assertion that three or four billionaires cannot generate employment for the country; jobs will come only through production and MSMEs.

The representatives said they had earlier not taken Rahul Gandhi's warnings with the seriousness they deserved, but now that every warning has come true, all illusions have shattered. They pledged to stand openly with Rahul Gandhi's struggle and vision for a democratic India rooted in production, employment and economic justice. PTI SKC SKC KSS KSS

GST and tax design allegedly empower monopolies and squeeze MSMEs, undermining production and jobs. Allegations assert that current policy and tax design, notably GST and an inverted duty structure, empower monopolies while burdening MSMEs through bureaucratic complexity and adverse tax slabs, undermining production and employment and favouring large corporate houses.