Hyderabad: Ponnam Prabhakar on Friday criticised the fuel price hike and accused the BJP-led Central government of deceiving people after elections in four states and one Union Territory. Addressing the media in Hyderabad, he alleged that the Centre avoided increasing petrol and diesel prices until the election process ended.
The minister said the government announced the revised fuel prices immediately after the elections concluded. According to him, the decision imposed an additional financial burden on common people, particularly in Telangana. He also claimed Union Ministers G. Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay Kumar had repeatedly assured the public that fuel prices would not increase.
Ponnam Prabhakar alleged that the Narendra Modi government later approved the increase despite those assurances. He targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over remarks made during a recent Hyderabad visit. The minister claimed Modi’s comments about reducing fuel use and avoiding unnecessary spending on oil and gold hinted at the coming increase.
Fuel price hike opposed by Congress leaders
The minister also questioned the Centre’s explanation that global conflict conditions caused the increase in fuel prices. He said the international conflict had continued for a long period and was not a sudden development. According to him, the Centre could not justify the decision by citing global conditions alone.
Ponnam Prabhakar stated that the Congress party would strongly oppose the fuel price hike. He demanded that BJP leaders explain the decision and apologise to the public. Oil marketing companies had increased petrol and diesel prices by more than ₹3 per litre across the country from Friday morning.
