BENGALURU: Starting November 14, the state Congress unit will resume its protest against the hike in prices of essential commodities, including LPG, and rising unemployment. Reacting to the sudden reduction in petrol and diesel prices, KPCC president D K Shivakumar said that it is not a ‘Deepavali gift’ as claimed by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai or Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “When you snatch Rs 40 from someone and pay them back Rs 7, does that make it a gift?” he questioned.
“No matter what politicians or the Opposition do, it is the people’s mandate that matters,” he said, adding that the results of the bypolls showed BJP its place in the state. He said the Congress will continue its fight against price hike.
Claiming that the fuel price reduction is a victory of the common people, he said, “We had appealed to voters to teach the government a lesson and the bypolls results are proof. This also shows that in democracy, voters are rulers.” He, however, added that the Congress welcomes the cut.
Further, Shivakumar said there is a shortage of coal, which has disrupted power generation, which will turn away investors from the state. “This will further increase the unemployment problem. The coal minister in the Modi government is from Karnataka. The state is getting supply for one day. We will discuss it with our party leaders on November 7 and take further action,’’ he said.