Alleging that the Central government has earned ₹25 lakh crore from taxes and duties on fuel, senior Congress leader and the leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday said that Narendra Modi failed to keep the poll promises he had made before becoming the Prime Minister (PM). Kharge said that Congress would corner the Modi government over inflation in the monsoon session of the Parliament, slated to from July 19.
Kharge said that his party has been fighting the battle against inflation on roads, but it will now take it to the floor of both the Houses during the monsoon session.
Kharge said that the Modi government increased fuel rates 326 times during his tenure as PM, even as the past two months have seen 38 price revisions.
“During the Manmohan Singh government till 2014, the Central taxes on fuel were just 9.48%, which had not gone beyond ₹32.90 per litre. Despite the crude oil price being $111 per barrel, the price of petrol was ₹71 per litre as compared to today’s rate of ₹107, though the crude oil price in the international market is $44 per barrel. The Modi government has amassed ₹25 lakh crore in the past seven years. Similarly, the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) subsidy has come to zero when the price per cylinder is ₹834. Modi had said that the direct benefit transfer system will save ₹15,000 crore a year. We want to ask the Centre why the amount saved through it is not being spent on the citizens,” he asked.
Kharge also said that the rates of pulses have increased by 12.72% as compared to last year. Citizens are directly hit because of the inflation and even farmers are not benefited from it, he said.
{{/usCountry}}Kharge also said that the rates of pulses have increased by 12.72% as compared to last year. Citizens are directly hit because of the inflation and even farmers are not benefited from it, he said.
{{/usCountry}}“The Singh government could push 27.1 crore citizens above poverty line. But the Modi government’s tenure has resulted in 23 crore people slipping below the poverty line. Around 133,000 people lost their jobs over the past one year, while the per capita income has dropped by ₹10,000 in just one year,” he said.
BJP spokesperson Vishwas Pathak said, “The Congress-led governments in the past use to play trick by asking the oil companies raise the money through oil bonds to keep the oil prices in control. Modi government had to shoulder the responsibility to repayment of the oil bonds raised by the previous government. Similarly, the Modi government did no increase direct taxes and reduce indirect taxes to 16% from previous rate of 23%. By introducing GST, the government could raise the budget size to ₹34 lakh crore from ₹14 lakh crore seven years ago. If the Congress wants the fuel prices in Maharashtra to reduce, it can ask its government to remove the state taxes which are a third of the selling price. The Central taxes are equal to one third of the selling price and of that too, 40% is given to states through devolution.”