By IANS
New Delhi : Opposing any hike in the prices of petroleum products, the Left parties Monday asked the government to remove the ad valorem surcharge on petroleum products.
Denying media reports that the Left has given its consent to the government to raise fuel prices, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) said it would not approve any increase in petroleum prices at a time “when people are already suffering from the spiralling prices of essential commodities”.
In a statement, the CPI-M politburo said there had been no consultation between the government and the Left over the petrol price hike.
“It is estimated that the central government has collected Rs.40,000 crore (Rs. 400 billion) more than the budget estimates through ad valorem taxes. If this amount were returned to the oil companies, the necessity of increasing the prices of petroleum products would not arise,” the statement said.
Earlier reports suggested that the Left had consented to raise the prices of diesel by Rs.2 and petrol by Rs.4 per litre. Some media reports said Petroleum Minister Murli Deora had met CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury and Communist Party of India (CPI) MP Gurudas Dasgupta on this.
A group of ministers headed by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee is expected to meet Thursday to discuss the option on pricing to meet the challenges posed by a steep hike in the international prices of crude.
Dasgupta also denied reports that he had met Deora. He termed the reports as “false and fabricated”.