Excise cuts won't change fuel price for consumers, relief only in narrative: Congress
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Friday claimed that the government's
excise cuts will not change prices for dealers and consumers, and that the relief exists only in the narrative, not in reality.
The government has slashed excise duty on petrol to Rs 3 per litre and exempted diesel fully from the duty.
The Congress said the government should focus on delivering actual relief to consumers, instead of "manufacturing headlines and fooling people."
The party's media and publicity department head, Pawan Khera, said, "If you saw the headlines about petrol and diesel prices 'coming down' and thought the government had offered relief to your pocket, you'd be mistaken."
As of now, prices remain the same for dealers and for consumers, he claimed.
"What has actually been reduced is the 'special additional excise duty' — a levy paid by Oil Marketing Companies to the government. The words 'special' and 'additional' reveal how unnecessary this tax is," Khera said on X.
He pointed out that these companies have been absorbing losses since the outbreak of the conflict in West Asia.
"The government has now merely agreed to share a small part of that burden but reducing the 'special additional' levy - that too almost a month later," the Congress leader said.
"Relief exists but only in the narrative -- not in reality. Instead of manufacturing headlines and fooling people, the government should focus on delivering actual relief to consumers," Khera said.
Global crude prices have risen by almost 50 per cent since the United States and Israel launched military strikes against Iran on February 28, triggering sweeping retaliation from Tehran.
In a notification issued late on March 26, the Finance ministry cut excise duty to Rs 3 a litre, from Rs 13 a litre earlier, while the levy on diesel was slashed to nil from Rs 10 earlier. The duty cuts are effective immediately, the ministry said.
Despite the spike in international prices, retail pump rates have not been changed, putting a strain on the finances of oil companies.
The government cuts stand to give some relief to oil companies.
Tracking the excise duty cut notification, shares of fuel retailers IOC, BPCL and HPCL opened higher on BSE.
International oil prices touched USD 119 per barrel earlier this month, before pulling back to around USD 100 per barrel.
India imports 88 per cent of its crude oil and roughly half of its natural gas. These mostly come via the Strait of Hormuz.
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Cong MLAs protest in Assembly seeking action against BJP legislator for remarks on Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka Legislative Assembly has witnessed chaotic scenes, with ruling Congress MLAs trooping into the well of the House, demanding the Speaker take action against BJP MLA Munirathna, accusing him of inappropriate behaviour and making personal comments against Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.
The incident occurred on Thursday while Shivakumar was replying to a discussion on issues relating to Bengaluru. Shivakumar is also the Minister in-charge of Bengaluru Development.
As Munirathna made certain comments on Shivakumar, demanding answers to some of the issues raised by him concerning the city, Congress members took strong objection to it, calling it "inappropriate behaviour".
Munirathna demanded that Shivakumar answer his question, making remarks against the latter, even after Speaker U T Khader declared the discussion on Bengaluru closed and proceeded to the Question Hour. This further enraged Congress MLAs.
Congress legislators demanded that the Chair expel Munirathna from the House.
The ruling party MLAs then trooped into the well of the House, demanding that the Chair give its ruling and announce action against Munirathna by expelling him.
As the chaos continued, Leader of Opposition R Ashoka urged the Speaker to end the stalemate by ensuring that Munirathna gets a reply to the issues on which he is demanding answers, through officers, and expunge certain inappropriate comments that were made.
However, Congress members demanded that Munirathna apologise or that the Speaker suspend him.
Khader, while expunging the comments made during the exchange, said, "Karnataka is not known for revenge politics, but humanity and harmony. This is the tradition of this House. We must uphold the honour and decorum of the House. This is not a place to display power or indulge in personal attacks."
Warning strict action against any act of indiscipline, he said, "We should ensure that such things don't repeat."
He said the Chair can give a ruling expelling or suspending a member only when the government names him or her.
Following the Speaker's warning against any act of misconduct and a request to them, Congress members withdrew their protest.
Earlier in the day, Shivakumar and Munirathna engaged in a verbal altercation after the former referred to cases against the MLA, which the Speaker had expunged from the records.
