Congress Says Will Launch 3-Phase Campaign To Protest Against Rising Fuel Prices

Surjewala claimed that the BJP govt had made Rs 26 lakh cr in 8 years by increasing excise duty on petrol & diesel.

Auto fuel price rise continues unabated.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

The Congress party on Saturday, 26 March, announced that it will launch 'Mehngai Mukt Bharat Abhiyan,' a three-phase protest against rising fuel prices, across India between 31 March and 7 April.

Lashing out at the central government over rising fuel prices, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that the every day increase in prices had proved that the dictum for the PM Narendra Modi-led government was “Fleece the People, Fill Coffers.”

Surjewala alleged that the BJP government had earned Rs 26 lakh crore in eight years by increasing excise duty on petrol and diesel.

Accordingly, on 31 March at 11 am, Congressmen and people will protest outside their homes and public places with garlanded gas cylinders and beat of drum bells and other instruments to draw the attention of the deaf BJP government against the insurmountable increase in prices of gas, petrol, and diesel.

The Congress statement added that between 2 and 4 April, there will be a district level 'Mehngai Mukt Bharat Abhiyan' protest and march, and on 7 April, the same will take place at state headquarters.

Earlier in the day, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took to Twitter to take a swipe at the Modi government, writing, "King prepares for a palace, while subjects reel under inflation."

Rising Fuel Prices

This comes as state-owned oil marketing companies (OMC) on Saturday raised petrol and diesel prices for the fourth time this week. In New Delhi, the price of petrol and diesel was hiked again by 80 paise per litre, with petrol now costing Rs 98.61 per litre and diesel Rs 89.87 per litre in the national capital.

These prices were revised after a gap of over four month on Tuesday, 22 March. Till Tuesday, fuel prices were steady since November 2021 when the Centre reduced excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 5 and Rs 10 per litre, respectively.