The Congress in Maharashtra castigated the Bharatiya Janata Party over its nation-wide shutdown against the steep hike in diesel prices and the UPA government’s decision to allow Foreign Direct Investment in multi-brand retail.
Dubbing the bandh as a limp one that completely failed to take off in the State, Maharashtra State Congress president Manikrao Thakre alleged on Thursday that the BJP too had hiked the price of diesel 11 times during its tenure while prominently promoting the ushering in of FDI in the retail sector.
“The BJP, in their election manifesto, had explicitly stated that they would bring in FDI in the retail sector,” he said, remarking that the bandh exposed BJP’s double standards.
The very fact that prominent right-wing parties like the Shiv Sena and the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena did not support the shutdown in the State proved that they too tacitly supported the Centre’s move to bring in FDI in multi-brand retail, said Mr. Thakre.
