Petrol prices not coming down as States do not want to bring fuel under GST: Hardeep Singh Puri

Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said petrol prices crossed the ₹100-mark in West Bengal as the Trinamool Congress government is levying heavy taxes.

September 23, 2021 12:03 pm | Updated 12:16 pm IST - Kolkata:

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri during a campaign in support of the BJP candidate from Bhabanipur constituency, in Kolkata, on September 22.

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri during a campaign in support of the BJP candidate from Bhabanipur constituency, in Kolkata, on September 22.

Petrol prices in the country are not coming down as the States do not want to bring fuel under the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.

In an interview to PTI in Kolkata, Mr. Puri said petrol prices crossed the ₹100-mark in West Bengal as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government is levying heavy taxes.

“If your question is do you want the petrol prices to come down then the answer is yes. Now, if your question is why the petrol prices are not coming down, then the answer is because the States don’t want to bring it under GST,” he said.

Explained | Why did GST Council refuse to bring petrol, diesel under its ambit?

“The Centre charges ₹32 per litre (as taxes on petrol). We charged ₹32 per litre when the fuel price was $19 per barrel and we are still charging the same even when the price rose to ₹75 per barrel. With this ₹32 per litre, we provide free ration, free housing and Ujjawala, among several other schemes, to the people,” he said.

Mr. Puri said the West Bengal government increased prices by ₹3.51 per litre in July, resulting in the petrol crossing the century-mark.

“The combined taxation is around 40% here [West Bengal]. It is very easy to make statements. Had you [TMC government] not increased the price by ₹3.51, then it would have been still under ₹100 per litre,” he said.

Mr. Puri was in Kolkata on Wednesday to campaign for the Bhabanipur bypoll in which Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is the TMC candidate against BJP’s Priyanka Tibrewal and CPI(M)’s Srijib Biswas.

“If the result of the Bhabanipur by-election is a foregone conclusion, then why is the entire State Cabinet campaigning there? We are confident about a victory, and post-poll violence is a major issue in this poll,” he claimed. On the political developments in Punjab, Mr. Puri said it reflects the “terminal decline” of the Congress.

“Definitely it is an indication of the Congress party’s terminal decline. I am choosing my words very carefully. In Bengal, they fought with one set of allies. In Kerala, they fought with a different set of allies. They are drawing almost blank everywhere. In Uttar Pradesh, where the Congress party grew up, I don’t know who wants to partner them,” he said.

“What is going with the Congress in Punjab is a comedy and theatre of the absurd,” Mr. Puri added.

"CAA is to deal with persecuted minorities"

Pitching for the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the Minister said the Afghanistan crisis proved why it was necessary.

“When the legislation was conceptualised, it was very clear that minority community in our neighbourhood would be facing a challenging situation,” he said.

“In CAA, the cut-off date is 2014, and those who had opposed it are now saying that the cut-off date should be made 2021. CAA is to deal with persecuted minorities who fear for their life. As part of our overall philosophy, India as a country has accepted refugees. Those who had opposed CAA then are now looking silly,” he said.

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