UPA & NDA Equally Responsible For Fuel Price Hike Says Mayawati

Who is to be blamed for the fuel price hike that the commoners are facing- the Congress led-UPA government or the BJP led NDA’s?

According to the BSP supremo Mayawati, both the NDA and the UPA had disregarded the interest of the farmers and the poor in the matter of the fuel hike.

The previous UPA regime had brought fuel out of government control and the ruling NDA continued with the policy, she had said, adding that after coming to power in 2014, the NDA had deregulated diesel, which had hurt the interest of the poor.

This statement has angered the Congress and comes at a time when the Opposition needs to show their unity ahead of the 2019 elections.

A Congress source said that Mayawathi’s remarks would send the wrong signal to both the public and the ruling party, doubting the Grand Alliance’s strength.

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But was this Mayawathi’s way for asking more seats in upcoming Assembly polls? “By doing so, she is sort of trying to gain upper hand in negotiations for the Assembly seats in these states…it is, however, for the Central leadership to understand that we should weigh our options and potential before entering into any alliance,” a senior Congress leader stressed.

“Although the foundation of the intricacies of the alliance for the Lok Sabha polls will be set much before in the Assembly polls in these states, the party needs to be clear that its negotiations on seat sharing should not be at the cost of the party and its workers as Congress is the stronger party in these states,” he said.

Mayawathi’s statement on the fuel price hike comes a day after her party refuses to participate in the National Bandh led by the Congress.