Friday, 25 April 2025
Friday, 25 April 2025
A Rs 2 per litre hike in excise duty on petrol and diesel, along with a steep Rs 50 increase in domestic LPG cylinder prices, has drawn sharp criticism from opposition leaders, who accused the BJP-led central government of burdening common citizens and fuelling inflation.
Karnataka deputy chief minister D.K. Shivakumar urged the state unit of BJP to take out their march, Janakrosha Yatre, against their own government at the Centre instead.
The Karnataka BJP on Monday had launched its 16-day 'Janakrosha Yatre', a statewide campaign criticising the Congress government for price hike, 4 per cent reservation for Muslims in government contracts and alleged diversion of funds meant to SC/ST sub-plan.
"Namaskara to my BJP friends, you are all doing Janakrosha Yatre, I congratulate all of you. But at the same time the Government of India, your BJP government, has hiked the prices of petrol, diesel and gas," Shivakumar said.
Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin cited a Tamil saying, 'even if someone did not help, they should not cause trouble' and added that this is applicable to the "sadist BJP" government at the Centre.
The increase rubbed salt to the wound and it has become a practice for the BJP to enact a drama by reducing a small portion of it before elections.
The Congress party's social media handle on X shared an old video of PM Modi opposing the price hike of LPG cylinders apparently during the UPA regime.
"The government increased the price of gas cylinder by 50 rupees. Narendra Modi opposed this and said that the government snatched away gas cylinders from the people," the party said in the post.
'Inflation Man' Modi has given a big blow to the public in the form of inflation. Modi government has increased the price of domestic gas cylinder by Rs 50. Narendra Modi has rubbed salt on the wounds of people suffering from inflation. Modi government's recovery continues...," it further said.
Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi took to X and posted in Hindi, “Finally, Modi ji gave a befitting reply to tariffs! Tax on petrol-diesel and gas cylinder prices were increased further. People suffering from inflation were given another gift of government loot!”
“The idea of ‘Vikas’ for the BJP government at the Centre seems to be squeezing every last penny from the pockets of ordinary Indians. From essential medicines to petrol, diesel, and cooking gas, every necessity is slowly becoming a luxury,” said Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.
She added, “While families struggle with shrinking savings and mounting debt, this regime continues its assault on household budgets. BJP isn’t running a government at the Centre, it’s taking money from people’s pockets.”
"On completion of 10 years of the MUDRA scheme, contradictory data has exposed scams and irregularities worth Rs 33 lakh crore under the BJP government," Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav wrote in an X post.
He said stock market investors lost Rs 19 lakh crore recently, LPG cylinder prices have been hiked by Rs 50 and excise duty on petrol has increased by Rs 2 per litre.
Nationalist Congress Party MP Supriya Sule raised questions about the government’s justification, posting on X, “The govt had blamed global crude oil hikes for skyrocketing fuel prices. What’s the new excuse? The citizens demand answers—not silence.”
