Congress slams 'idle' Centre over fuel price hike, unemployment

Congress leaders KC Venugopal and Sachin Pilot slammed the Centre over rising fuel costs and unemployment. Venugopal called the govt 'idle' while Pilot accused it of hiding the price hike reality for political gains during elections.

Expressing deep concern over the persistent surge in fuel costs, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal on Monday launched a scathing attack on the Union Government, alleging that the administration is "completely sitting idle" while the common public grapples with skyrocketing prices and an unemployment crisis.

Addressing reporters, Venugopal said, "The government is not doing anything to address the issue. They are completely sitting [idle], and the Prime Minister is touring all over the world. Every day, petrol and diesel prices are increasing; people are in very, very big difficulties. Unemployment is at a high, and our youth are not getting any jobs." He further warned of social unrest, adding, "Already people are in distress, and natural agitation will come."

Pilot accuses govt of calculated political strategy

Echoing these concerns, Sachin Pilot accused the government of a calculated political strategy. He highlighted that the international factors influencing fuel prices were well known even during the election phase, yet the government chose to hide the reality. "The US-Iran war has been going on for a very long time, even when there were elections in five states. The government did not let us know the situation then, and now that the results are out, we are seeing rising fuel costs almost daily," Pilot told reporters.

He further alleged that the Centre manipulated the pricing to suit its political timeline. "If you wanted to burden the common man, you should have told us before; what problem would have arisen during elections? You did not say anything, but now you want to pass the burden to the people. The government is not checking inflation at all, and I think the government has only one agenda: that is to win elections, torture the opposition, and disgrace the opposition," Pilot added.

Petrol crosses Rs 100-mark in Delhi

This comes after petrol and diesel prices were hiked once again today, marking the fourth increase in less than two weeks amid continued volatility in global crude markets and ongoing geopolitical tensions in West Asia. Petrol prices in Delhi crossed the Rs 100-mark, rising by Rs 2.61 to Rs 102.12 per litre, while diesel prices increased by Rs 2.71 to Rs 95.20 per litre. Similar hikes were witnessed across major metropolitan cities, including Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai, adding to the burden on consumers and transport operators.

Cascading effect on inflation feared

The continued hikes in petrol, diesel and CNG prices are likely to increase logistics and transportation costs further, potentially triggering a cascading effect on retail inflation and impacting household budgets as well as commercial transport sectors across the country.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)