National

Fuel price hike unwarranted: CPI(M)

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI JUNE 4. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has described the increase in the prices of petrol and diesel as ``completely unwarranted'' and said the move will further burden the people already groaning under the onslaught of the BJP-led NDA Government's economic policies.

In a statement here, the party's politbureau said the rationale given by the Government justifying the hike was completely untenable. ``The increases in the international prices of oil do not justify this hike. The extra expenditure incurred as a consequence should have been met by withdrawing the additional cess of Re. 1 per litre on diesel that was imposed in 1998.''

The party said this year's budget had doubled the cess on oil produced by public sector companies, garnering for the Government an additional Rs. 2,700 crores in revenue. ``The total removal of this — approximately Rs. 5,400 crores — will be more than sufficient to offset the extra expenditures due to the rise in international prices. Such a cess is incompatible with a deregulated system where the Administrative Price Mechanism (APM) has been dismantled,'' it said.

The CPI(M) charged the Government with not adhering to the commitment of reducing duties on petroleum products that had to accompany the process of dismantling the APM.

The Government was bolstering its finances at the expense of the people to meet its fiscal requirements. This year alone, the Government was expecting to collect a whopping Rs. 44,000 crores through taxes on petroleum products if international prices remained at $20 a barrel.

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