NCP leader Jayant Patil asks Centre to ensure no further hike in fuel prices if it wants state govt's support

On the rising prices of petrol and diesel, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis had said if the state government reduces Rs 20, people will get relief as the state government is collecting Rs 52 tax from fossil fuels.

Responding to Fadnavis' remark, Jayant Patil, the state president of the Nationalist Congress Party, said that if the state government reduces taxes, it will not benefit the citizens but the central government, during an event in Uran.

“Even if the state government reduces the prices, the central government will continue to increase petrol and diesel prices,” said Patil. He added since prices of fuels will continue to increase daily, how the reduction in VAT will benefit the citizens.

“On the contrary, the central government will collect arbitrary prices from the public by raising taxes. If the central government promises that it will not raise prices, then we are ready to reduce prices,” said Patil. Patil had come to Uran to join the Nationalist Congress Party's family dialogue program.

Patil said that people who were raising their voices during former PM Manmohan Singh period for the rise in petrol and diesel prices should also raise their voices now. “Those activists must be aware them that at the time of Manmohan Singh, petrol was Rs 60 per liter,” said Patil.