Defeat BJP to bring fuel prices down by ₹50: Shiv Sena

The allies of Shiv Sena in Maharashtra government said Delhi’s move to slash excise duty on fuel came after BJP lost some crucial assembly and Lok Sabha bypolls held on October 30

Rajya Sabha MP and Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut said on Thursday that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will have to be electorally defeated to bring down fuel prices by ₹50. Raut’s comment came a day after the Central government reduced excise duty on fuel to bring petrol and diesel prices down by ₹5 and ₹10 respectively. The price of petrol reached a record ₹115.50 per litre in Mumbai on Monday, November 1, while diesel peaked at ₹106.62 per litre the same day.

Sanjay Raut said that Maharashtra government will consider bringing down the VAT on fuel. At least 10 BJP-governed states announced additional cuts in petrol and diesel prices soon after the Centre’s announcement. (HT PHOTO)

Sena’s allies in Maharashtra’s Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government – Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress – said Delhi’s move to slash excise duty on fuel came after BJP lost some crucial assembly and Lok Sabha bypolls held on Saturday, October 30.

Senior Congress leader and former Union minister P Chidambaram said on Thursday that “the results of the recently concluded by-elections had a by-product” in the form of a reduction in excise duties on fuel. Sena and NCP leaders added that if fuel prices have to be brought down by ₹50, “BJP has to be defeated completely.” They added that the reduction in Central taxes – effective Thursday – was “too little too late.”

Central excise on one litre of petrol was reduced on Wednesday from ₹32.90 to ₹27.90, while the levy on diesel came down from ₹31.80 to ₹21.80.

Maharashtra’s BJP unit, however, questioned the state government whether there will be a reciprocal reduction in state taxes. At least 10 BJP-governed states – Assam, Tripura, Manipur, Karnataka, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand – announced additional cuts in petrol and diesel prices soon after the Centre’s announcement.

Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil said, “The state does not seem to have any intention of cutting value-added tax (VAT) to further reduce fuel prices. They only know how to point fingers at the Centre.” A Central government statement said it had urged states to commensurately reduce the value-added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel to give relief to consumers.

Sena spokesperson Raut questioned the ₹5 reduction in petrol price after it had crossed ₹115. “The Centre should have reduced fuel prices by at least ₹25 per litre to provide relief to people,” he said on Thursday. “They (Centre) realised that prices need to be slashed after they lost the bypolls. Even after the loss, they reduced the price by only ₹5 [for petrol]. If we have to bring prices down by ₹50, we have to completely defeat BJP… They first hiked it over ₹100 and then reduced it by a mere ₹5.”

Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Raut said people fill up their fuel tanks “in front of Modi’s hoardings, where he is giving them blessings… This needs to end after 2024.”

NCP, too, said the BJP “got scared” after the recent bypoll results and that “fuel prices will reduce further if agitations against the unreasonable hike intensify.” NCP spokesperson and state minister Nawab Malik said, “After losing bypolls in several states, they (BJP) are scared. This is the reason excise duty on fuel has reduced immediately. Fuel prices have been reduced only because of the ‘defeat BJP agitation’. Continue this agitation, and prices will reduce further.”

Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe said the record fuel prices resulted in high inflation and that “97% of the population lost its purchasing power.” Londhe said on Thursday, “The petrol and diesel prices were ₹71 and ₹58 a litre respectively when crude oil prices were US$107 a barrel in 2014 during the Congress-led government. The Central excise duty was ₹3.56 and ₹9.48 a litre respectively on diesel and petrol. Today, crude oil price is around US$83 a barrel. Yes, fuel prices are at an all-time high.”

BJP leader and former minister Ashish Shelar said that it’s time now for the state government to reduce its excise duty to give greater respite. “Shiv Sena and two other ruling parties had been making hue and cry over the fuel price rise all these days. Posters and banners were put up by Shiv Sena at various places. I am sure the party which leads the state government in Maharashtra will reduce its excise to give the respite to the people. It is time for the state government to show that its concern about the fuel rise is not fake,” he said.

Malik said the MVA government is ready to implement the taxation policy of Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government on fuel prices. “If the taxation policy of the UPA is implemented, then prices will drastically reduce,” he said.

Sanjay Raut said that Maharashtra government will consider bringing down the VAT on fuel. “Discussions are on,” he said. “The state government will think about it, but the larger responsibility [to reduce fuel prices] rests on the Central government. The Maharashtra government has constantly raised questions about people facing the heat of inflation. Yuva Sena recently carried out protests against the price rise.”