With the Narendra Modi government facing criticism over rising prices of onion and other essential commodities, BJP has come out in defence of the Cabinet, claiming that Congress-backed middlemen are falsely inflating prices.
“The price of onions from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan veers between Rs.10-22, we suspect the rise is due to a few middlemen considered close to Congress, who are artificially raising prices,” said BJP’s national media convenor Shrikant Sharma.
He further said that a crackdown on such hoarders will be done without delay and state governments have been issued instructions to that effect.
Sharma said the government has taken several steps to contain the rise of essential commodities, including the decontrol of fruit and vegetables from the control of middlemen and setting up of fair price shops in over 200 locations in Delhi alone.
Sudhanshu Trivedi, a Party spokesperson said some of the government measures like a rise in fuel prices and tariffs for rail were temporary measures, and that conditions on price rise will ease after the presentation of the Union budget next month.
“Some of these measures are temporary, needed to stabilise matters in the immediate future, but the government will come up with some effective measures in the long term soon,” Trivedi said.
Meanwhile, Government sources said prices of kerosene and subsidized LPG will not be hiked. “While these commodities have little to do with the situation in Iraq, the effort of the government is to not touch these commodities and to bring down the effect of such external situations on fuel prices, especially diesel,”said a top source in the government.
“It is not always possible for the ministers newly inducted in the government to defend it. The party will be stepping in more and more,” said a party insider on condition of anonymity.