Fuel Price Shock Draining People’s Wallets: Y. S. Sharmila Slams Centre

Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Y. S. Sharmila has strongly criticized the Centre over the repeated hike in fuel prices, accusing the Narendra Modi-led government of pushing the financial burden entirely onto the public.

Reacting through a post on X, Sharmila said the back-to-back increase in petrol and diesel prices was hitting middle-class and lower-income families hard. She noted that fuel prices had been raised four times in the last ten days, adding to the pressure on households already dealing with rising living costs.

She alleged that the latest revisions were imposing an additional burden of nearly Rs. 1,000 crore per day on people across the country. At a time when consumers expect relief from inflation, the Centre should reduce taxes instead of increasing fuel costs further, she said.

Recalling the fuel pricing approach adopted during the UPA government led by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Sharmila said the burden of rising crude oil prices was then shared between the government, oil companies, and consumers to protect the public from steep shocks. In contrast, she alleged that the current government was transferring the entire impact onto citizens.

Sharmila also expressed concern over fuel prices in Andhra Pradesh, stating that petrol had reached Rs. 117.19 per litre while diesel touched Rs. 104.88 per litre. She criticized Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for remaining silent despite the steep rise in prices.

The Congress leader further demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Rs. 4 VAT and Rs. 1 road cess imposed by the state government on fuel, saying the move would provide much-needed relief to people struggling with soaring transportation and daily expenses.