“Looting public for his rich friends”: Congress targets PM Modi after CNG price hike in Delhi

New Delhi: Congress has launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday following the price hike for Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) by Rs 2 per kg in Delhi, accusing the latter of “looting the public for his rich friends”. Highlighting that CNG rates have increased four times in the last 12 days, the party labelled the PM as the “Inflation Man,” a term coined by the party to criticise him for these recurring hikes.
“The ‘Inflation Man’ Modi’s whip lashed out at the public again.CNG has been made ₹2 more expensive. In the last 12 days, CNG prices have been increased by ₹6. When did the prices rise. “, the party said on X.
The Congress party highlighted the consecutive fuel price hikes, detailing that rates increased by Rs 2 on May 15 and 26, and by Rs 1 on May 18 and 23, and claimed that “Narendra Modi is looting the public for his rich friends.”
The prices of CNG have increased by Rs 2 per kg in Delhi with effect from Tuesday, adding to the commuting burden for users of CNG-powered vehicles. CNG will now cost Rs 83.09 per kg in the national capital.
The latest revision makes it the fourth hike in CNG prices in less than 15 days. It comes just days after the previous hike of Re 1 in CNG prices on Saturday. The CNG hike also impacts public transport fleets in cities like Delhi, where a large share of buses and cabs run on the fuel. Petrol and diesel prices were also hiked once again on Monday, marking the fourth increase in less than two weeks amid continued volatility in global crude markets and ongoing geopolitical tensions in West Asia. Fuel prices in India are revised based on international crude and gas rates, exchange rates, and local levies. The recent increases come amid elevated global energy prices due to ongoing West Asia tensions and supply concerns, which have kept both crude oil and natural gas markets volatile. The back-to-back hikes in CNG, petrol, and diesel are set to raise transport and logistics costs, with potential knock-on effects on inflation. For households, the impact will be felt through higher commuting expenses and possible increases in prices of goods transported by road. However, the Centre maintained that it has forgone nearly Rs 14,000 crore in tax revenue after reducing excise duty on petrol and diesel to shield consumers from rising fuel prices, according to Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Petroleum Ministry. The government had cut central excise duty by Rs 10 per litre on both petrol and diesel on March 27, following a sharp rise in global crude oil prices due to tensions in West Asia.