Petrol price hike fuels debate

The hike in petrol price and the spiraling inflation resonated at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting here on Monday.

After two Union ministers A K Antony and Vyalar Ravi openly resented a hike in petrol price, almost all the 42 leaders, who expressed their views aired their concern on the issue.

Sources informed Deccan Herald that Kerala Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, who was one of first speakers attended by 98 Congressmen, opposed the hike vehemently even demanded that the decision to deregulate fixing petrol process be taken back.

Chennithala and other leaders said that “we try to explain the reasons for such decisions, but it is difficult to explain to the people”. Congressmen also demanded that instead of explaining such decision in technical language like GDP, the government should try to put it in the language a common man can understand.

In an apparent attempt to explain the reasons for petrol price hike, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said: “These are difficult times for our country and our economy, caused to a large extent by circumstances over which we have little or no control”.

Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee also defended the hike and said while no one
was happy it was not possible for the Central government to absorb all crude spike.
Pranab said he had written to chief ministers to reduce taxes and put in place a mechanism to contain it if petroleum prices continue to rise.  

“I have written to the chief ministers of various states indicating how much revenue is collected by respective states and how much revenue is collected by the central government in the form of excise duty from that state,” he said.

In the meeting that lasted for more than five hours, Union ministers and alliance partners of the Congress came under severe attack, senior leaders, who attended the meeting said.

They said that the Union ministers have become highly inaccessible with a party leader from North East saying that “it is easy to meet Sonia Gandhi, but difficult to meet the central ministers”.

One leader informed that Maharashtra PCC chief Manirao Thakre attacked alliance partner NCP and said that “our fight is not with BJP or Shiv Sena in the state rather with Sharad Pawar’s party”.

“Pradeep Bhattacharya and a Muslim leader from West Bengal attacked TMC chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for ruling the state as she wants and not giving any space for Congressmen,” another senior leader said after the meeting.

Former Chhattisgarh chief minister Ajit Jogi has appealed Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi “to come out of the shadow of Youth Congress and NSUI and take bigger responsibilities”.

Interestingly, Rahul was silent throughout the meeting.