Delhi BJP holds protest demanding AAP govt cuts VAT on petrol, diesel

The BJP's Delhi unit held a protest here on Saturday against the AAP government for not reducing value-added tax (VAT) on diesel and petrol in the national capital.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently flagged the issue of higher fuel prices in many non-BJP states and urged the governments there to reduce VAT in the ''national interest'' to benefit the common man.

The protest on Saturday was led by Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri.

Addressing BJP workers at the protest, Gupta accused the Arvind Kejriwal government of being ''insensitive'' towards the plight of the common man due to price rise in petrol in Delhi caused by the high VAT rate.

There was a time when people in Delhi used to get their vehicle's fuel tanks full as petrol and diesel here were cheaper compared to other NCR towns. But the scenario has changed now, he claimed.

''Many-BJP ruled states such as Goa, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh have reduced VAT on diesel and petrol to give relief to people but Arvind Kejriwal did not slash the rates here.

''The AAP government can give discounts on liquor but cannot reduce VAT on petrol and diesel,'' the BJP leader said.

The BJP workers who participated in the protest near Chandgi Ram Akhara on the Outer Ring Road raised slogans against the Delhi government.

They tried to move towards the chief minister's residence at the Flag Staff Road but were stopped by the police. The protesters claimed that some of them were also detained by the police.

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Bidhuri, accused the AAP government of failing in the matter of governance. Water in Delhi is dirty and its supply poor, he claimed, adding, ''Even the Delhi Jal Board chairman Satyendar Jain has accepted that supply water is not fit for drinking.'' Meanwhile, the AAP's trade wing hit out at the Centre over high fuel prices and wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to cut excise duty on diesel and petrol.

In his letter to the prime minister, AAP trade wing convenor Brijesh Goyal held the Central government responsible for the rising prices of petrol and diesel. ''Heavy excise duty by the Centre and arbitrariness of oil companies are responsible for skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel. The Union petroleum minister should hold a meeting with the petroleum companies and reduce the prices for the consumers,'' he said.

Goyal further said that in 2014 petrol was Rs 61.37 per litre, whereas it is being sold at Rs 105.41 per litre these days.

''In 2014, the Delhi government used to levy 20 per cent VAT on petrol, which has now come down to 19.40 per cent. At the same time, the central government used to charge an excise duty of Rs 9 per litre on petrol in 2014, which has become Rs 27.90 per litre today. ''The excise duty has been increased by 210 per cent. The PM has to understand that the root of petrol and diesel's price hike is excise duty, not VAT,'' Goyal said in a statement.