Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Congress leader Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday demanded that petrol prices be reduced to $82 per liter of current $102 per litre, alleging that the Center allowed oil companies to make “unlawful profits” despite the decline in global crude oil prices.
In a press conference, Kejriwal said that global crude oil prices fell but consumers in India did not receive the benefit, with gasoline prices remaining unchanged for several months.
“Gasoline should be available in $82 per liter instead of $Diesel prices should also be reduced by 102 per litre, Kejriwal said, urging the government to pass on the benefits of lower crude oil costs to consumers.
The AAP chief claimed that global crude oil prices have fallen several times since 2014, but fuel prices in India have not fallen proportionately.
“Between 2014 and now, global crude oil prices have fallen at least six times, but the country’s gasoline prices have not fallen accordingly. What happened to the bumper profits made during these years?” he asked.
Kejriwal further said that reducing petrol and diesel prices would help bring down inflation and provide relief to households and businesses.
He accused the center of allowing oil companies to charge high prices, and said that companies should not make what he described as “unlawful profits” at the expense of consumers.
Also Read: “Will the company be compensated if…”: Kejriwal’s letter to Maruti, Toyota and Hero seeking clarification on E20 fuel policy
The Oil Minister talks about gasoline prices
Global crude oil prices may have fallen to a four-month low, but retail petrol and diesel prices in India are unlikely to fall anytime soon as state-run refineries are still processing more expensive crude bought during the height of the West Asia crisis, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said earlier this week.
Gasoline and diesel prices rose by about $7.50 per liter in the second half of May, more than two months after the outbreak of conflict in West Asia and less than the increase in global fuel costs, which led to state-owned fuel retailers absorbing a large portion of higher crude oil prices.
The delay and partial delay led to the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) incurring huge losses on the sale of petrol and diesel, even as global oil prices have declined since then.
According to news agency PTI, Puri said state-owned fuel retailers suffered cumulative losses of $100 million. $74,781 crore on sale of subsidized petrol, diesel and cooking gas. The figure includes losses from selling gasoline and diesel below cost for four months after the outbreak of conflict in West Asia on February 28, in addition to unrecovered LPG subsidies for the same period and previous months.
(With inputs from PTI)
