Congress slams Centre over repeated hike in fuel price

Chandigarh: The Punjab Congress on Monday criticised the Narendra Modi-led central govt over the continuous rise in petrol and diesel prices, accusing it of burdening common people at a time when crude oil prices have fallen in the international market and oil companies are making huge profits.Condemning the latest fuel price hike, Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said the repeated increase in petrol and diesel prices by the Modi govt amounted to "stealing money" and "picking the pockets" of common people across the country.Warring said fuel prices increased by about Rs 7.5 per litre in recent days. He accused the central govt of increasing the prices "stealthily" in a piecemeal manner.In just 10 days, the BJP govt increased petrol and diesel prices for the fourth time, said Warring. "It is not governance, but systematic inflation imposed on people," he added.The PCC chief questioned why the govt needed to increase fuel prices when global crude oil prices had declined, and oil companies were already earning huge profits.Leader of the opposition in Punjab assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, also slammed the Union govt. He said the fuel prices were hiked again, the rupee continued to weaken against the dollar, and the cost of living was becoming unbearable for ordinary Indians.Bajwa said after petrol breached the Rs 100 per litre mark, the rupee might soon crash to Rs 100 per dollar, while the Modi govt continued to celebrate "strong diplomacy" and "economic success".He said the BJP promised that the Prime Minister's global image and friendships would strengthen India's economy. Instead, people are facing higher fuel costs, expensive imports, inflation and shrinking savings. "The truth is that every economic shock is now being passed directly onto the common citizen," Bajwa said.Congress MP from Gurdaspur, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, also criticised the Modi-led central govt over the continuous rise in petrol and diesel prices.He said the BJP govt, which once claimed "neither will I indulge in corruption, nor will I allow others to do so", was today carrying out the "biggest robbery" of the public's hard-earned money.Randhawa said petrol prices were again increased by Rs 2.61 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.71 per litre, even though govt-owned oil companies – Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited – earned a combined net profit of nearly Rs 19,470 crore in the fourth quarter of the financial year 2025-26.Instead of providing relief to common people, the burden of inflation is continuously being increased. The country's middle class is currently under the greatest economic pressure, with cooking gas, food items, travel, electricity, education and every daily necessity becoming more expensive, he added."The common man is no longer dreaming about the future but is forced to calculate monthly expenses just to survive," said Randhawa.MSID:: 131309523 413 |