Petrol inches close to Rs 81 a litre in Delhi after 5th straight price hike

While Opposition parties led by the Congress have called for a 'Bharat Bandh' to protest the rising fuel prices in the country, Left parties have announced a separate shutdown of their own.

Bharat Bandh : Adding to the woes of the common man, petrol and diesel prices were again raised on Monday, a fifth straight day of price hike in as many days by oil marketing companies. In Delhi, petrol continued its upward march in the previously uncharted territory of above the Rs 80 mark -- the price was raised by 23 paise a litre on Monday to Rs 80.73. The price of petrol in Delhi crossed the Rs 80 mark for the first time on Saturday, September 8.

Similarly, petrol prices in Mumbai were raised by 22 paise to Rs 88.12 a litre.

Another key transport fuel, diesel, also witnessed a similar hike of 22 paise in Delhi and 23 paise in Mumbai. Diesel now costs Rs 72.83 a litre and Rs 77.32 in Delhi and Mumbai, respectively.

Opposition parties like the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Maharashtra Navanirman Sena (MNS), led by the Congress party, have called for a 'Bharat Bandh' to protest the rising fuel prices in the country. Left parties have announced a separate shutdown of their own.

Other parties such as Trinamool Congress, Aam Admi Party and Biju Janata Dal have voiced their concerns over the price hike, however, they have stayed away from the street protests called by the Congress.

Congress leaders Sushil Kumar Shinde, Rajiv Satav and Amit Chavda in a press conference in Ahmedabad said that the Modi government pocketed Rs 11 trillion from the public by raising taxes on fuel and not including petrol and diesel under GST.

"The government has the power to reduce prices. It appears the government lacks coordination with oil companies which has resulted in the rise in prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas on a daily basis," Shinde said.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje announced a 4 per cent cut in the state value-added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel on Sunday to reduce their prices by Rs 2.5 per litre in the state. VAT on petrol would be reduced from 30 to 26 per cent and on diesel from 22 to 18 per cent, Raje announced at a public meeting.

Article Source BS