The Opposition tore into the Centre on Tuesday over a sudden spike in fuel taxes and cooking gas prices, accusing the Modi government of unleashing yet another assault on household budgets. From Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, leaders across party lines slammed the NDA regime for what they termed as ‘economic cruelty’ inflicted on the common man.
In a double whammy for consumers, the price of domestic LPG cylinders was raised by Rs 50, while CNG went up by Rs 1 per kg. Simultaneously, excise duty on petrol was hiked to Rs 13 per litre and diesel to Rs 10—just as global crude oil prices slid to a three-year low.
Rahul Gandhi led the charge, sarcastically applauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi for offering a “befitting reply to tariffs.” Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge went a step further, calling it “a gift of loot” from a government that has remained “in Kumbhakaran-like” slumber even as the economy buckled under the weight of inflation.
‘Kumbharakaran-like sleep on tariff policy’: Mallikarjun Kharge
In a post in Hindi on X, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, “Wah, Modi ji, Wah!! International crude oil prices have fallen by 41 per cent compared to May 2014 but your plundering government, instead of reducing the prices of petrol and diesel, has increased the central excise duty by Rs 2 each.”
The hike in LPG, CNG and excise duty on petrol and diesel followed a sharp drop in international oil prices, which have steeped to their lowest levels since April 2021, significantly after the imposition of trade tariffs on several countries by US President Donald Trump. Kharge went on to call NDA government’s stance a “Kumbhakaran-like sleep” on the tariff policy.
वाह मोदी जी वाह !!
मई 2014 के मुक़ाबले अंतर्राष्ट्रीय कच्चे तेल की क़ीमत में 41% की गिरावट आई है, पर आपकी लुटेरी सरकार ने पेट्रोल-डीज़ल के दाम कम करने के बजाय, ₹2-₹2 Central Excise Duty बढ़ा दी है
टैरिफ़ नीति पर कुंभकर्णी नींद से शेयर बाज़ार में छोटे-बड़े निवेशकों का एक…
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) April 7, 2025
“You must not have been satisfied after the small and big investors in the stock market lost Rs 19 lakh crore in one go due to the deep ‘Kumbhakaran-like’ sleep on the tariff policy that your government has come to rub salt into the wounds!” Kharge said.
Commenting on the excise duty hike, Kharge said in a post on X, “Finally, Modi ji gave a befitting reply to ‘tariffs’! Tax on petrol-diesel and gas cylinder prices were increased further. People suffering from inflation were given another gift of government loot!”
Stalin calls NDA govt sadist
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, who has been at loggerheads with the Centre over various issues including delimitation and the three-language policy in the National Education Policy, termed the Union government “sadist” and demanded they roll back the price hike without waiting for polls.
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Stalin cited a Tamil saying, which means, “even if someone did not help, they should not cause trouble” and added that this is applicable perfectly to the “sadist BJP” government at the Centre.
நாட்டு மக்களின் வீடுகளில் அடுப்பு எரிய வேண்டுமா? அல்லது அவர்களது வயிறு எரிய வேண்டுமா?
“உதவி செய்யாவிட்டாலும் உபத்திரவம் செய்யாமல் இருந்தாலே போதும்” என்பது, #SadistBJP அரசுக்கு மிகவும் பொருந்தும்!
உலக அளவில் #CrudeOil விலை சரிந்துள்ள நிலையில், #Petrol #Diesel விலையைக்… pic.twitter.com/lLC1I2ejS3
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) April 7, 2025
“They rubbed salt to the wound and it has become a practice for the BJP to effect steep increase and to enact a drama by reducing a small portion of it before elections. The Centre must rollback the hike immediately, without waiting for elections somewhere in the country,” Stalin urged in a social media post.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav followed suit slamming the Centre over the price hike and alleged discrepancies in the MUDRA loan scheme. Yadav wrote in an X post, “On completion of 10 years of the MUDRA scheme, contradictory data has exposed scams and irregularities worth Rs 33 lakh crore under the BJP government.” He said stock market investors lost Rs 19 lakh crore recently, LPG cylinder prices have been hiked by Rs 50 and excise duty on petrol has increased by Rs 2 per litre.
BJP protest in Karnataka against price hike
Faced with protests by BJP leaders in Karnataka, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar urged them to agitate against the Centre instead. The Karnataka BJP on Monday had launched its 16-day ‘Janakrosha Yatre’, a statewide campaign criticising the Congress government for price hike, 4 percent reservation for Muslims in government contracts and alleged diversion of funds meant to SC/ST sub-plan.
“Namaskara to my BJP friends, you are all doing Janakrosha Yatre, I congratulate all of you. But at the same time the Government of India, your BJP government, has hiked the prices of petrol, diesel and gas,” Shivakumar said. “I wish you all the best, you have to continue your Janakrosha Yatre against the BJP government,” he added.
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Terming BJP’s Janakrosha Yatre as “farce”, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah too on Monday had said, ” Now I want to know the reaction of the BJP leaders in the state. The BJP leaders should explain to the people of the state why the Central Government is continuously increasing the prices of petroleum products even though the price of crude oil is falling in the international market.”
In a post on ‘X’, he said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has smeared ink on the faces of BJP leaders who are trying to put the burden of the sin of price hike on our heads.
“Those who have embarked on the Janakrosha Yatra now have only two options: either they should put pressure on the Prime Minister to reduce the prices that the Central BJP government has increased, or they should end the Yatra, pack up and return to their respective homes. Apart from this, if they continue with the farce of this Yatra, they will definitely face public anger,” he added.
‘Vikas to extract every last penny from common people’: Mamata Banerjee
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee came to the fore saying the idea of NDA government’s “Vikas” is to extract every last penny from the common people. “The idea of ‘Vikas’ for BJP government at the Centre seems to be squeezing every last penny from the pockets of ordinary Indians. From essential medicines to petrol, diesel, and cooking gas, every necessity is slowly becoming a luxury,” Banerjee posted on X.
বাহবা নন্দলাল
হাজার টাকার গ্যাসে ফুটছে বিনা পয়সার চালThe idea of “Vikas” for BJP Government at the Centre seems to be squeezing every last penny from the pockets of ordinary Indians. From essential medicines to petrol, diesel, and cooking gas, every necessity is slowly…
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) April 7, 2025
“While families struggle with shrinking savings and mounting debt, this regime continues its assault on household budgets. BJP isn’t running a government at the Centre, it’s taking money from people’s pockets,” Banerjee added.
With PTI inputs
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