MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said the Central government's reduction of excise duty on petrol and diesel was not enough and demanded that it be brought down further to what it was six or seven years ago.
In a statement, Thackeray criticised the Central government for minimal reduction of excise duty on petrol and diesel.
"Two months ago, the excise duty on petrol was hiked by Rs 18.42 per litre and today, it has been reduced by Rs 8, while the duty on diesel was increased by Rs 18.24 per litre and now it has been brought down by Rs 6. It is not good to make drastic hikes and then provide minimal reduction," the chief minister said.
A real relief would be to bring the excise duty down to what it was six or seven years ago, he added.
Earlier in the day, the Central government cut excise duty on petrol by a record Rs 8 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 6 per litre to give relief to consumers battering under high fuel prices that has also pushed inflation to a multi-year high.
The excise duty cut will translate into a reduction of Rs 9.5 a litre on petrol and Rs 7 a litre in diesel after taking into account its impact on other levies.
Hitting back, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said the Maharashtra government should bring down the state taxes on petrol and diesel after the Union government offered a major relief.
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier in the day cut excise duty on petrol by a record Rs 8 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 6 per litre amid high inflation.
In a social media post, Fadnavis said, "By reducing excise duty on petrol and diesel, the union government is going to bear revenue implication to the tune of Rs one lakh crore annually.
Maharashtra government needs to follow suit and reduce state excise duty on petrol and diesel further."
The state excise duty makes fuel rates in Maharashtra one of the highest in the country, and "political parties should take steps to offer further relief to people instead of organising protest rallies on the streets," the former chief minister said.
"With this decision, the union government has once again proved the fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government works for the poor," Fadnavis added.