Petrol prices have risen by ₹7 in the last 14 days and this reflects how the Centre is least bothered about people from all sections, who are already suffering from loss of income due to corona-related lockdown, said AICC secretary and former MLA Vamshi Chand Reddy.
Speaking to reporters here, he said with the latest hike, petrol prices have touched ₹81.88 per litre in Hyderabad and diesel prices have touched ₹75.91 per litre. He said the Congress has been demanding the rollback of the prices but the government is ignoring it. He recalled a letter written on June 16 by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying his government’s decision to increase prices on petrol and diesel during the coronavirus pandemic is “wholly insensitive”. Mr. Vamshi criticised the government’s move to increase the fuel prices at a time when the economic impact of COVID-19 is depriving millions of jobs and livelihood, devastating business, rapidly eroding the income of the middle class, even as farmers are struggling to sow crop for the kharif season.
He pointed out that the price of crude oil in 2014 during the UPA regime was $107.09 per barrel and has drastically fell down to $40.66 per barrel at present. On the contrary, the price of petrol and diesel has risen. Despite the price of crude oil being higher during the UPA regime, the fuel prices were comparatively low, he added. This is all because of the NDA government’s cruel motive to earn additional revenues to the tune of ₹2,60,000 crore by hiking the taxes and burdening the poor and middle class with increased fuel prices, he said.
