Condemning the latest hike in the price of petrol, the Left parties on Friday demanded that the government cancel the move that would have a cascading effect on inflation and price rise.
“This third increase in the price of petrol this year comes at a time when inflation is touching double digits and the people have no respite from the price rise of essential commodities. This callous move will only have a cascading effect on inflation and price rise,'' the Communist Party of India (Marxist) Polit Bureau said.
“People of the country can see that the Congress-led government is itself responsible for stoking price rise and inflation by such measures,” the statement said, demanding cancellation of the latest price rise and restoring the administrative regulation of pricing of petrol.
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Terming the rise in price of petrol “unjustified,'' the CPI said the claim of oil companies of loss due to change in rupee-dollar exchange rate was only a “temporary phenomenon.''
“The pretext is that there is a difference in the exchange rate of rupee with U.S. dollar. The price of a litre of petrol is less than $1.5. The variation in the rate of exchange is 66 paise per dollar. But the increase effected is Rs.3.14 per litre. The exchange variation is generally a temporary phenomenon. The pretext for the increase in the price of petrol does not satisfy anybody,'' the party said.
Both parties called upon their units to mobilise the people to protest against this measure. The CPI has also decided to organise demonstrations and other forms of action on Saturday against the increase.
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