Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda has ridiculed the Modi government’s efforts to blame the Congress on oil bonds saying the bonds’ interest was just ₹7,000 crore annually while the government was earning ₹4.53 lakh crore on fuel taxes.
He said the oil bonds issued by the UPA government protected the Indians from the huge international fuel prices thus keeping the inflation in control but the BJP government was trying to divert their ‘fleecing’ of people raising oil bonds issue, he said at a press conference here on Thursday.
Mr. Hooda was here as part of the Congress nationwide campaign to expose the government on the increasing prices of oil, cooking gas and food items. He addressed the media along with TPCC president A. Revanth Reddy, TPCC Campaign Committee chairman, Madhu Yaskhi, TPCC working presidents Mohd. Azharuddin, J, Geeta Reddy, Anjan Kumar Yadav and Mahesh Kumar Goud, and senior leaders Damodar Rajnarsimha and Shabbir Ali.
The Rajya Sabha member said the Modi government increased the fuel prices a record 66 times earning ₹25 lakh crore but did not spare the common man when their incomes had fallen due to the pandemic.
In 2014 when the UPA gave up power, the excise duty on petrol was ₹9.48 per litre and it had increased to ₹41.90 now, he said adding that the excise duty on diesel was ₹3.56 per litre and it was ₹31.80 now. Despite the crude oil prices in the international market falling by over 50% the Modi government went on increasing the fuel prices, he claimed.
Ridiculing the Make in India slogan of the government, he said the crude oil production in India was 23.04% of the domestic needs while it had reduced to 15.08%. This was directly related to the ditching of the Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) like the ONGC where the capital was reduced thus hitting its exploration activities.
Mr. Hooda said the unemployment rate was 8.1% and it was the highest in the last 70 years according to the Centre of Indian Monitoring Economy report and even the NSSO reports also reflected the same. HE also claimed the economic growth in the country had hit a downward trend much before the pandemic.
Mr. Hooda said the Union government’s response to the pandemic was poor. While other countries were putting money in people’s hands the Modi government was snatching through high fuel prices and loss of jobs. The ₹20 lakh crore package announced by the Prime Minister remained on paper and the beneficiaries were nowhere seen. However, fleecing of people continued with unprecedented collections from people who were already battered with job losses and poor economic growth.
‘Criticism ridiculous’
Mr. Hooda said Congress had been raising these issues both inside and outside Parliament. But media had been deliberately playing out the government’s version more than the opposition’s voice.
Mr. Revanth Reddy said the KCR government was collecting ₹32 as tax per litre of petrol out of the ₹105. Though the actual cost of petrol was ₹40 the Centre was collecting ₹32 and KCR government was earning ₹32 per litre.
Mr. Reddy said a Chalo Raj Bhavan call was given against the rising prices on July 16.
