‘Cong castigates Modi govt over inflation’

Raipur, Jul 13: Former Union Minister and Congress leader Subodh Kant Sahai today criticised the centre over rising prices of petrol and diesel in the country. Rise in prices of petrol and diesel led to rise in prices of food items and other consumer products, he said while talking to the reporters at State Congress headquarters Rajiv Bhavan here today.
Petrol price crossed Rs 100 per litre in more than 200 cities including Delhi today and diesel price crossed Rs 90 per litre, he said adding that Modi Government hiked petrol and diesel prices 69 times from January to July 7. The issue would prominently be raised in upcoming monsoon session of the parliament and if this is not solved Congress would come to the streets to save people, he said.
Sahai said that when schedules for parliament elections and elections in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh were released in March 2019 petrol price stood at Rs 72.46 per litre and diesel price at Rs 67.44 per litre and average price of crude oil in international market was Rs 4,565.20 during that time. He said that by the time election results came out crude oil price in international market reached Rs 4881.53 but petrol price came down to Rs 71.25 and diesel price to Rs 66.29 but within a month after announcement of election results the prices increased again.
Similarly, in February 2021, when the elections for West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Kerala and Assam were announced, the price of crude oil in the international market was Rs 3 thousand 979 per barrel. Petrol in the country was available at Rs 91.17 and diesel at Rs 81.47 per litre. The results of the elections came on May 2. The price of crude oil was Rs 4 thousand 699.33 on that day, but the price of petrol was reduced to Rs 90.40 and diesel to Rs 80.73. A fortnight later i.e. on May 18, the price of petrol was Rs 92.85 and that of diesel was Rs 83.51, he said. Sahai said, if it had depended on the market forces, then how the prices could come down during the elections even after the crude oil became expensive. This is political inflation, which is increasing and decreasing at the will of the central government, he said. According to Sahai, no other option is left in the country and that Congress would fight for the people and vehemently raise this issue during monsoon session of parliament. If central government did not give any relief the Congress would launch agitation, he said, adding that people cannot be left to die. He alleged that BJP government at the centre changed the definition of democracy. By throwing the public in the fire of inflation, the Modi government is squeezing the income of even the person standing in the last row, he said, adding that it would be clear soon that it is not the country of Modi; rather it is the country of Gandhi.
According to Sahai, it is not an exaggeration to call the Modi government a careless government. Common people have been adversely hit by inflation; money is negligible in the hands of the people. Had there been a little honesty, the government would have talked about giving cash to the public. He said that present government at the centre is forcing people to pay more and more money. The Congress alleged that the Modi government has done the work of pushing 23 crore people below the poverty line.