New Delhi, Feb. 4 -- In the stock market circles of Central and South Mumbai, the phrase 'kya lagta hai' (KLH, what do you feel)? can be a conversation starter. During the course of any such conversation in the last few months, the KLH crowd would eventually get around to cribbing about how high taxes are holding the stock market and economy back.

Nonetheless, throughout this fiscal year following the July 2024 budget, tax rates have largely remained unchanged. So, why has the KLH crowd been so vociferous about high taxes lately? And why was there so little noise earlier?

Stock prices peaked in late September and have fallen since. This could potentially reduce the annual bonuses for the KLH crowd, which may explain their recent outpour...