Sangh issues oil diktat to BJP govts

NEW DELHI: As the opposition NDA, led by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, gets ready to hit the streets on Monday against the fuel price hike, the RSS has said such protests ‘lack intellectual honesty’ and asked BJP-ruled state governments to reduce state levies on petrol and diesel instead of adding to public misery.

“The BJP can make a beginning instead of protesting on the streets by stopping the wheels and adding to public misery. The party can walk the talk by asking its state governments to reduce state levies on fuel and show the way”, said an editorial in the latest issue of the RSS mouthpiece ‘Organiser’.

The editorial, apparently written ahead of the move by Congress-ruled states to slash sales tax on fuel to minimise the impact on the common man, said “the political parties cannot have it both ways. That is why we say, peace protests lack intellectual honesty.”

It also criticised the Left parties, agitating against the fuel price hike, for not reducing the tax imposed by state government in states ruled by them. “They don’t want to incur a revenue loss,” the editorial said.

The mouthpiece, however, praised the BJP for its willingness to separate the price fixing mechanism from political interference, while in power and regretted that the decision was shelved under the UPA.

The editorial also took a dig at the protests by the Congress and the Left on the issue saying, “The CPM is protesting fuel price hike as if the BJP is in power at the Centre. The Congress is protesting as if it is the NDA which is ruling. Sonia Gandhi protests as if Atal Bihari Vajpayee is running the country. Political farce cannot be more brazen.”

Top NDA leader including Vajpayee, leader of the opposition LK Advani, JD(U) president Sharad Yadav and BJP chief Rajnath Singh would be courting arrest here on Monday in protest against the hike in petrol and diesel prices affected last week.

The BJP has already ruled out any reduction in levies by its state governments saying the maximum duties on these products were levied by the Centre and they should be restructured and neutralised.