Congress To Protest Fuel Prices, Power Bills On July 4, 6

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President & Nalgonda MP N Uttam Kumar Reddy today said that the party would organise protests against the rising prices of petrol and diesel on July 4, and against the inflated electricity bills on July 6.

Addressing the Congress cadre through Facebook on Friday, Reddy appealed to them to participate in both the protests in large numbers while following the Covid-19 guidelines of wearing masks and maintaining physical distance.

Reddy said that the Congress would organise the July 4 protests against the rising fuel prices in the various mandal headquarters, towns and municipalities of the state, and submit a memorandum to the President of India through the officials concerned.

He said that the July 4 protests were being organised at the national level on the directions of AICC President Sonia Gandhi.

He asked the party cadre to conduct hour-long dharnas from 11 am at the tehsil offices in the various mandal headquarters, and at the municipality offices in the various towns.

He asked them to submit memoranda addressed to the President to the Tehsildars and Municipal Commissioners concerned.

Later, the Congress leaders should upload the video and photo clippings of the agitation on Facebook, Twitter etc as part of the "Speak Up" program, he said.

Expounding on the issue, Reddy said that the BJP-led NDA government was not extending the benefit of the drop in global prices of crude oil to the common man. He pointed that during the UPA's regime in 2004-05 the price of petrol was Rs 30 per litre and that of diesel was Rs 25 per litre, when the per barrel cost of crude oil was $40. The fuel prices in the country increased later when crude oil became costlier.

He said that the price of crude oil in the international market today again stood at $40, but the Modi government had not extended the benefit to the common people. Instead, it had increased the excise duty to burden the common people.

In addition, the KCR government was collecting the highest Value Added Tax (VAT) on petrol and diesel in the country. The double whammy had boosted the prices of petrol and diesel to Rs 83.49/litre and Rs 78.69/litre respectively today.

He also condemned the TRS government for the inflated electricity bills charged to the people for the lockdown period.

He said that each and every family in the state had received bills which were 2-4 times higher than the average for the period.

He said that a massive protest would be held on July 6 demanding a full waiver of the power bills for poor consumers and a reduction in the bill amount for the middle class.

Protests would be held before the offices of the electricity companies in all assembly and district headquarters, he said.

He asked the party cadre to organise protests with black flags and badges.

Reddy also demanded that the present non-telescopic method of billing be replaced with the telescopic method which would reduce the bill amounts by almost 50% for all consumers.