Delhi Congress attacks Kejriwal govt over VAT hike on petrol, diesel; demands rollback

The Delhi Congress on Tuesday slammed the Kejriwal government for increasing the VAT on petrol and diesel in the national capital. Calling it a blow to the common man, former Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken said that it is an unprecedented hike in VAT on petrol and diesel to 30% from 27% on petrol and 16.5% on diesel in Delhi.

'Nowhere in the world...'

During the Congress regime, VAT on petrol was 20% and on diesel, it was 12.5%, he said. Moreover, the VAT Act, 2004 during the Congress regime, capped the VAT at 20% for petrol and diesel, Maken said in a video conference.  

Accusing the AAP government, Maken added, "Soon after coming to power in 2015, on June 30, the AAP government amended the Act to increase the cap to 30%. Citizens seeking relief in the form of cash and tax cuts are meted out with this treatment is a shame. Nowhere in the world, any government would have inflicted such hardships on their citizens." Maken demanded that the hike be rolled back. 

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Similarly, the party's Delhi unit president Anil Kumar in a video conference said the people of Delhi, are already burdened by joblessness and lack of any source of livelihood, and the increase of VAT on diesel and petrol is like inflicting another blow on them.

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The Delhi government on Tuesday increased value-added tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel resulting in the rise in the price of the two fuels. While the petrol price has increased by ₹1.67 per litre, the price of diesel has increased by ₹7.10 a litre. The Delhi government has said that this increase will be on till the COVID-19 period.

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(With agency inputs)