Congress MLA and the son of former chief minister Virbhadra Singh, Vikramaditya Singh on Sunday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi led government on reduction of excise duty on petroleum products and said the move seems to have been taken to gain political mileage in upcoming assembly polls in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat.
Singh said the Modi-led Central government takes decisions to meet political objectives and the government announced a reduction in prices of diesel, petrol, and LPG as elections in Himachal and Gujarat are nearing.
The Modi government seems to be feeling the effects of price rise in the country which has made the lives of the common man worse over the last three months.
However, he welcomed the decision but termed it too late as the people were bearing the brunt of rising inflation.
He stated that earlier, the Central government had reduced the prices of petroleum products after facing a complete rout in by-polls to the three assembly seats and Mandi Lok Sabha seat.
The price of LPG cylinder has now crossed the Rs 1,000 mark and the beneficiaries of the PM Ujjwala scheme are the worst sufferers of this hike. The Rs 200 subsidy to these beneficiaries is just too little, too late, Singh said while urging the Central government to take concrete steps to give relief to the common man from rising inflation in the country.