SP chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged the Centre will increase petrol and diesel prices to cover oil corporation losses of Rs 30,000 crore monthly. He accused the BJP of promoting capitalism and planning to take money from people's pockets.
SP Chief Alleges Centre Plans Fuel Price Hike
Samajawadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday alleged that the Central government is planning to increase the price of petrol and diesel amid the supply disruption caused during the West Asia conflict. He claimed that reports of oil corporations suffering losses of nearly Rs 30,000 crore every month indicate that petrol and diesel prices could increase in the coming days. "It has come out recently that Oil corporations are incurring a loss of Rs 30,000 crore in a month, which means that to make up that loss, efforts are being made to take money from your pockets. Just like they made gas cylinders expensive...now the price of diesel and petrol is going to increase. I read this in today's paper itself. Bharatiya Janata Party promotes capitalism", Yadav said.
Addressing reporters in Lucknow, the Samajwadi Party chief said, When the BJP was formed, there was a debate within it whether it would be secular or not. Yadav also targeted the Centre over rising fuel prices and the financial condition of oil marketing companies. "When the BJP was formed, there was a debate within it whether it would be secular or not, when the proposal was passed, they accepted that we will adopt the socialist ideology and the secular path that was just pretense, in reality they turned out to be capitalist. To claim to be socialist, they brought a picture of JP (Jayaprakash Narayan)," the SP chief said.
Yadav Questions EVMs, Demands Return to Ballot Papers
Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday questioned the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and alleged that electronic devices, including smart meters, can be manipulated. "In a democracy, nothing should be suspect. EVMs and electronic devices are suspect. Smart meters can be manipulated... We will support the way England voted yesterday through ballot. If not today, then tomorrow, wheher it takes an year or a century, we will eliminate EVMs", he said.
Appeals to Party Workers for Discipline
Akhilesh Yadav appealed to party workers to remain disciplined and avoid acting out of "enthusiasm and zeal" amid the ongoing political debate surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists. "I would appeal to my workers not to get carried away by enthusiasm and zeal and go to anyone's office.. One of our journalists was asking why you are not going on the road? Should we allow dishonesty in the SIR?... They want us to roam on the road while they make changes in the voter list", he said.
Challenges ECI on Poll Transparency
Earlier on May 7, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav challenged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to release CCTV footage of voting in the West Bengal assembly polls. He also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of covering its "lies" by telling another one. Yadav invoked the incidents reported during the Rampur bypolls in 2022, where he alleged that voters were stopped from coming out to exercise their franchise. He further questioned the Election Commission and demanded transparency in the polling processes."The BJP people are very scared of CCTV and cameras. If the Election Commission is impartial, then show the CCTV video of the voting in Kundarki to the public. If the proceedings of the Supreme Court can be live, then why can't the CCTV of Bengal's voting and counting be shown?" he said.
Alleging voter suppression, Yadav claimed that democratic processes were undermined in the recently concluded West Bengal assembly polls. (ANI)
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