Fuel price hike: Oppn slams UPA, stage protest

Mangalore Today / IndiaTV

New Delhi, June 25: A day after hiking fuel prices that led to a lot of anger among consumers across the country - the Congress is in damage control mode. The party has asked its chief ministers to cut cess on LPG.

 

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has taken the lead. An ally of the UPA - she had slammed the Central government for the hike. LPG in her state will be cheaper by Rs 16.

The Opposition - that is the BJP and the Left - have both asked for an immediate rollback.

A day after the government raised prices of diesel, kerosene and LPG, opposition parties staged protests across the country.

There were protests in the capital - Varanasi, Jammu, Pune, Trivandrum and Lucknow. Chief Ministers of all Congress-ruled states have been asked to cut cess on LPG to provide some relief to consumers. LPG was hiked by Rs 50 on Friday.

Meanwhile, the BJP’s Shahnawaz Hussain has said state duties on fuel are less in BJP-ruled states compared to Congress-ruled states. The Centre had tried to soften the blow by slashing customs duty on crude oil and excise duty on diesel.

 

"We want an immediate rollback. Taxes are less in the BJP rules states in comparison to the Congress ruled states," said Shahnawaz Hussain.

"This is the tenth hike. This time the victims are housewives, farmers and poor people. The Central government is being insensitive to the common man’s problems," said Sushma Swaraj.

"It was done in tune with the rising crude oil price, internationally," said Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Diksit.