Hike in VAT on diesel exposes double-standards of BJP: Congress

CHANDIGARH: Haryana Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Kiran Choudhry today criticised Haryana government's decision to hike VAT on diesel and said that it exposes the "duality of approach and naked hypocrisy of the BJP."

The former Excise and Taxation minister said that the hike in VAT by the Khattar government neutralized the decision of the central government to cut the prices of diesel by Rs 2 per litre and stared the fall in the prices of crude in the global market in the face.

"It exposes the duality of approach and naked hypocrisy of the BJP," she said in a statement issued here today.

Moreover, the decision which will hit the farmers and the common man hard, lays bare the dual standards of the BJP which is protesting the hike in VAT on diesel made by the Delhi government but has effected it in Haryana where it is in power, she said.

"The decision will help the state government in filling its coffers by squeezing the common man, especially the farmers, the BJP does not tire of swearing by day in and day out. This is the price the man in the street has to pay for the inefficiency and mismanagement of resources by the Khattar Government which is squandering precious public money to get cheap publicity," she added.

Haryana government yesterday raised VAT on diesel from 11.5 per cent to 16.4 per cent.