Stakeholders meet Tamil Nadu CM, but theatres to remain shut

CHENNAI: All theatres in the state will continue to remain shut on Tuesday as the strike called by Tamil Nadu Cinema Theatre Owners Federation is set to enter the second day. Theatre owners and film producers who held talks with chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday evening said they expect a favourable reply from the government by Tuesday.
Theatre owners went on strike against the imposition of 30% entertainment tax by the Tamil Nadu government in addition to the compulsory 28% Goods and Services Tax.Tamil Film Producers Council president Vishal and Tamil Nadu Cinema Theatre Owners Federation president Abirami Ramanathan met the chief minister, apart from ministers D Jayakumar, Kadambur Raju and S P Velumani.
Ramanathan has said the strike will continue until the state government revoked the 30% entertainment tax.
Commercial taxes department secretary C Chandramouli, in a TV interview, said, "There used to be an entertainment tax which was levied by the state government. Through a Constitutional amendment, the authority to levy the entertainment tax has been transferred to the local bodies recently. Tax levied by the state has been subsumed into the GST, but local bodies now have the power to levy entertainment tax." tnn