'Electoral lollipops': I.N.D.I.A bloc slams Modi govt over LPG price cut

Opposition bloc I.N.D.I.A on Tuesday linked the slashing of LPG prices by Rs 200 by the Narendra Modi government to its two meetings in two months, saying one should expect more such "gifts" in the coming months as the Prime Minister has become "desperate to cling on to his chair".

Soon after the Cabinet took the decision, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said, "when the votes started decreasing, then the election gifts started getting distributed. The merciless Modi government, which looted the hard earned money of the people, is now showing fake goodwill towards the mothers and sisters."

"The Modi government should know that in 2024, the anger of the troubled people of the country cannot be reduced by a Rs 200 subsidy. Fear of INDIA is good, Modi-ji! The public has made up its mind. The only option is to show the exit door to BJP to beat inflation," he posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Kharge claimed that the Modi government kept destroying the lives of common folk for nine-and-half-years by selling Rs 400 LPG cylinders for Rs 1,100. Why did such "affectionate gifts" not go to people, he asked.

"The BJP government should know that after torturing 140 crore Indians for 9 and a half years, handing over 'electoral lollipops' will not work. Your sins of a decade will not be washed away," he said, referring to Congress-led governments already slashing LPG prices in states.

In her post on X, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, "Till now, only two meetings have been held in the past two months by the INDIA alliance and today, we see that LPG prices have gone down by Rs 200. Yeh hai INDIA ka Dum".

Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said the BJP is literally "clutching at straws" three months ahead of elections to five states and six months before the Lok Sabha elections, as the ruling party is "staring at a certain defeat".

"A sudden slash in LPG prices by Mr. Modi. Why now, you may ask? Yeh hai kissa 'demokursi'. Karnataka rout of the BJP -- the high price of LPG was one of the main issues of the election. Two, highly successful INDIA meetings in two months and the third coming up in two days," he said.

In a post on X, he said the Congress government in Karnataka has implemented its five Guarantees in 100 days while Congress government in Rajasthan is giving LPG cylinders at Rs 500. The response has been phenomenal as people were hurting from BJP’s "misgovernance", he said.

"Expect more such ‘gifts’ in the coming months as the Prime Minister becomes even more desperate to cling on to his chair," he added.

NCP Working President and Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule said it is a 'jumla' government and asked what will happen by decreasing Rs 200.

"When UPA was in power, the prices were Rs 400 per cylinder but today, it is Rs 1,150. The Modi government should have decreased the prices by Rs 500 or Rs 700. This is all election 'jumla'. They did not think about inflation for four-and-a-half years. The people of Karnataka rejected them because of inflation and unemployment. That is why the central government is in fear," she said.

Meanwhile, BRS leader Kavitha Kalvakuntla posted on X, "first Increase the LPG cylinder price by Rs 800. And then decrease it by Rs 200. It’s not a gift, but absolute gaslighting of people’s emotions and pockets." BRS, however, is not part of I.N.D.I.A.