Surjewala also said that the public does not need 'jhumlas' but wants the government to roll back the prices to 2014 levels.
Highlights
- Surjewala slammed the Central government's decision to slash fuel prices
- He accused Sitharaman of fooling the public
- Rajasthan CM Gehlot also criticized the reduction in petrol and diesel prices
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala on Saturday slammed the Central government's decision to reduce prices of petrol and diesel by Rs 8 per litre and Rs. 6 per litre respectively.
Accusing Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman of fooling the public, Surjewala stated the petrol prices were increased by Rs 10 per litre in March and when the time came prices were slashed by Rs 9.50 per litre.
The opposition party demanded that the finance minister show courage and roll back excise on petrol and diesel to the level it was under the UPA in May 2014. "Nation doesn’t need jugglery of figures to dupe the people, Nation doesn’t need Jumlas, Nation needs rollback of excise on petrol and diesel to May 2014 levels of Rs 9.48/litre on petrol and Rs 3.56/litre on diesel. Stop deceiving, Show the courage to give relief," Surjewala said in a series of tweets.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot claimed the Centre had to reduce the excise duty under the pressure of the Congress party's public awareness campaign decided in the recently held Chintan Shivir. Speaking along similar lines as Surjewala, he said "If the central government really wants to give relief to the common man, then the excise duty should be reduced to the level of the UPA government, due to which the prices of diesel and petrol will be reduced by about Rs 70 per liter and the common man will get relief from inflation".
Govt cuts excise duty on petrol and diesel
The Central government on Saturday evening announced a reduction in central excise duty on Petrol by ₹ 8 per litre and on Diesel by ₹ 6 per litre. This will have a revenue implication of around ₹ 1 lakh crore per year for the government.
LPG subsidy
The Central government also announced a subsidy of Rs 200 per cylinder (up to 12 cylinders) to nearly 9 crore beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana.
In a tweet, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: "Also, this year, we will give a subsidy of ₹ 200 per gas cylinder (up to 12 cylinders) to over 9 crore beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. This will help our mothers and sisters. This will have a revenue implication of around
₹6100 crores a year"
Several BJP leaders applauded the government's decision
Meanwhile, the government's move garnered appreciation from several BJP leaders.
PM Modi stated that the drop in prices will impact various sectors and provide relief to the citizens.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi also appreciated the move while urging the state governments to take a similar decision
Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath stated that the decision will benefit the public and create an impact on all sections of the society.
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