Hyderabad, January 18: Condemning the hike in petrol prices by oil marketing companies, Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday said that his party would organize protests across 224 Assembly constituencies in the state as part of the first phase of its agitations to press for a roll-back.
Talking to media persons at NTR Trust Bhavan, the TDP chief said the party would organize protests across 224 constituencies on January 22 to show its opposition to the fuel price hike which ‘has put an additional burden on the common man, already reeling under skyrocketing inflation of food and essential commodities.
As part of the protests, Mr Naidu would seat himself on a bicycle to pedal his way from the NTR Trust Bhavan to Indira Park. The bicycle ride would be a symbolic protest to bring the attention of the Oil companies that the fuel prices have climbed a notch beyond the reach of the common man.
The party would intensify its protests in second phase after having discussions with like-minded parties and national leaders on the issue, Mr Naidu pointed out.
He said the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is bothered when the Sensex in the stock market falls but is not worried about the plight of common man who has to face the brunt of the escalating prices of essential commodities.
The former chief minister added that since 2004, the United Progressive Alliance government has hiked the petroleum prices 19 times. Mr Naidu appealed to the Prime Minister to follow Administered Price Mechanism to control prices. The Centre had discontinued the APM and had allowed the Oil Companies to set prices according to the market rate of oil at the global level.
Though the oil marketing companies earning crores of rupees in profits in the form of refinery margins, Mr Naidu stated that, they are hiking petrol charges burdening the people.
He also pointed out that both the Centre and state governments were getting 25 pc and 21 pc as tax by selling one litre of petrol. If the government reduces Value Added Tax, the prices of petrol will come down, the TDP chief stated.
INN