The BJP has demanded rollback of increase in petrol prices, saying the seventh hike in last six months was totallly unjustified.

Prakash Javedkar said the ground of under recovery by the oil companies cited by the govt as the reason for the hike is not correct.

He further expressed fear that now diesel prices may go up.

The latest increase in the prices of petroleum found rival CPI-M on the same side, deciding to go for an agitation to protest against the hike.

“Our leader Mamata Banerjee met Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee last evening at the airport here, and even there the decision was not communicated to her,” Trinamool Congress MP Sudip Bandopadhyay told reporters in Kolkata.

Senior leader of the party Partha Chatterjee also repeated the charge asking the government to roll back the hike and control the price rise.

“We urge the Centre to roll back the petrol price hike and control the prices of essentials,” he said.

Meanwhile, CPI-M general secretary Prakash Karat said deregulation of oil prices was fuelling inflation which, in turn, would also raise the prices of food.

Noting that the government had hiked the prices of petrol twice over the last one month, he said the party would organise a country-wide agitation “forthwith” on the issue with other Left and secular opposition parties.

Partha Chatterjee on the other hand announced protest- rallies and meetings all over West Bengal on January 17 and 18 and observed it would be better if such issues were discussed among UPA members before such decisions were taken.

Not to be left behind, CITU has also called a three-hour transport shutdown tomorrow from noon all over West Bengal.

It would also hold a protest-meeting at Metro Channel in the city tomorrow.

Referring to abnormal prices of onion, Karat said at a time when it was known the adverse weather would affect onion crop, the government gave incentives to its export by reducing the minimum export price by around USD 200 per quintal.

“This accentuated the shortage of onion while leading to huge profits for big trading companies. Subsequently, it reduced import duty to zero per cent and prevented government organisations like the State Trading Corporation from importing onions, once again giving huge profits to private traders,” he said.

He also slammed the government for refusing to curb speculation in food commodities by prohibiting forward trading in them and it is unwilling to universalise PDS and provide essential commodities through the system at reasonable prices.

Karat also made light of Trinamool’s appeal to the Centre to roll back the petrol price hike and control the prices of essentials, saying, “The price hike is a collective responsibility. Trinamool Congress will have to explain to the people how it is part of the government whose polices have brought untold suffering on the people.”