| The UPA government on Monday continued to face pressure from the Opposition as well as its own allies over the steep hike in prices of petrol. The Trinamool Congress, one of the UPA's key constituents, criticised the hike in petrol rates and announced an agitation in West Bengal on Monday. The party alleged that it had not been consulted before the hike - the second within a month. The AIADMK also slammed the Congress and the DMK for the hike in fuel rates. Party chief J. Jayalalithaa demanded an immediate rollback of petrol prices. State-owned oil marketing companies had on Saturday increased petrol prices by Rs 2.50 to Rs 2.54 per litre. The hike, it is feared, may push inflation further up. The Trinamool has been worried that the rising food inflation, coupled with another hike in petrol prices, could mar its prospects in the forthcoming West Bengal elections."Trinamool workers will protest against the price hike. Despite being in power, we were not informed about the decision. Price hike affects people. We have always stood by the people. That is why we have not revised fares (of railway)," Trinamool chief and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said. Mamata also hit out at the West Bengal government, saying that the fuel cess in the state was the highest in the country. "Had they not been charging such a high cess, fuel prices would have been lower in Bengal," she said. | ||
