Taking strong exception to the statement of Chief Minister Raman Singh on the Centre’s decision to increase the number of subsidised cooking gas cylinders per households to 12 from the nine, State Congress on Sunday said that Raman Singh had issued this baseless remark because of political hostility towards the Opposition.
In a statement here, Congress spokesperson Sushil Anand Shukla said the CM’s pride, conceit and vanity could clearly be seen in his statement and added that both the Government and opposition are constitutional set up in democracy. He said Singh’s statement that hike in the cooking was the last show of the Congress, should not forget that the house of pride remains empty. He also warned that the people would give a befitting reply to Singh in the forthcoming RS election by removing the BJP from all the 11 seats and further reminded that the decision of the Congress Government to give 12 lPG cylinders to the needy people of the country was on the initiative of the Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi. The spokesperson also accused the BJP Government for taking only four per cent VAT on the fuel of aeroplane, while it slapped 25 per cent VAT on petrol and diesel used by common man and farmers. Because of the hike in international market the prices of petroleum products increase, but the State Government slapped 25 per cent tax on each increased rupee.
The Congress also urged CM to reduce VAT on petroleum products to 4 per cent. He said under the youthful leadership of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, the policy of empowerment to common man, the popularity of the Congress has been increasing continuously and 2014 is of the Congress. The Congress will win the 11 seats of Chhattisgarh, he added.