Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday targeted Narendra Modi over the rise in LPG prices amid the ongoing tensions in the Middle East and announced that the All India Trinamool Congress will hold a protest rally in Kolkata on March 16.
“The war started immediately after the Prime Minister returned from Israel. Didn’t he know anything?” Banerjee told a news channel, reacting to the shortage of domestic LPG and the sudden rise in auto LPG prices in the state—from ₹57.06 a litre to ₹62.88—which impacted the public transport system on Wednesday.
PM Modi was on a two-day tour of Israel on February 25 and 26. US and Israeli missile attacks on Iran began on February 28.
Banerjee accused the Prime Minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of enforcing the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) on Tuesday instead of taking timely action.
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“What happened to the stocks we had? Why didn’t he take action on time instead of suddenly enforcing ESMA? Was there no planning? And this is not just because of the war. The price of a domestic LPG cylinder was ₹400 in 2014. They have hiked it to ₹1,000 over these years,” Banerjee said, targeting the BJP-led NDA government, which came to power for the first time 15 years ago.
{{/usCountry}}“What happened to the stocks we had? Why didn’t he take action on time instead of suddenly enforcing ESMA? Was there no planning? And this is not just because of the war. The price of a domestic LPG cylinder was ₹400 in 2014. They have hiked it to ₹1,000 over these years,” Banerjee said, targeting the BJP-led NDA government, which came to power for the first time 15 years ago.
{{/usCountry}}“Is there really a shortage? Or have they (Centre) held the stocks so that the fuel can be used during the elections?” Banerjee said, hinting at the upcoming polls in West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
Referring to some state BJP leaders’ earlier remarks that Banerjee was free to sacrifice the Bengal government’s share of fuel cess if she was so concerned, the chief minister said even that would not help in the current situation.
“I can give subsidy but that won’t help because there is no supply. What can common people do if the government starts hoarding? This is under the jurisdiction of the Union petroleum ministry,” she said.
“Thousands of people in the eatery and restaurant business are hit. The big businessmen can somehow manage, but what happens to the small ones? Those who deliver food have been affected as well. I was told auto-rickshaw drivers have been compelled to hike fares. Where will common people go?” Banerjee said.
Regarding the deletion of around 12 million names by the Election Commission of India during the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral roll in Bengal, she said, “Help common people instead of deleting their names.”
No Bengal BJP leader reacted to Banerjee’s remarks till the filing of the story.