New Delhi:
In the wake of the government hiking the prices of diesel, kerosene and LPG today, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa demanded an immediate rollback, describing the hike as "unacceptable."
"The price of LPG, which is being used by all strata of people has been increased by Rs 50. People cannot tolerate this. Further, the price of kerosene has also been increased by Rs 2. This will severely affect the poor people as they are the main consumers of kerosene" Jayalalithaa said in a statement in Chennai.
She said the hike in diesel price would result in increase in transport fare which ultimately would "severely affect the poor and the downtrodden."
"When there is an overall rise in prices, this hike in fuel prices would severely affect the people. I, therefore, would like to insist that the Centre should immediately roll back the hike in prices of diesel, kerosene and LPG," she said.
The Tamil Nadu CM also slammed the Centre for advising the state governments to reduce Value Added Tax (VAT). Jayalalithaa said the union government, which had hiked the prices of diesel, kerosene and LPG, "has no moral right to advice state governments to reduce VAT."
Not just Jayalalithaa, the BJP also slammed the government on the price hike and said it will have a cascading effect.
"This kind of an increase in the fuel prices - gas and diesel in particular - there is going to be a cascading effect as a result of which further rise of inflation is what we can expect. We, the people of this country, should understand that this government is no more for the aam aadmi," said Nirmala Sitharaman, Spokesperson of BJP.
The government, earlier today, approved a price hike for diesel, LPG and kerosene. Diesel prices will increase by Rs. 3 a litre, and LPG would cost Rs. 50 more per cylinder. Kerosene prices have been increased by Rs. 2 per litre. The hike in prices is exclusive of Value Added Tax (VAT).
Customs duty has been removed for crude oil and all petroleum products; and excise duty on diesel has been reduced to Rs. 2 from Rs. 4.60 per litre. This will result in a revenue loss of Rs. 49,000 crore for the government for the current financial year (2011-12).
(
With PTI Inputs)