Mamata Banerjee rules out further cut in petrol, diesel prices in West Bengal

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday accused the BJP government of “bulldozing the country’s federal structure”, while accusing the Centre of using central investigating agencies to harass the state government.

While addressing a press conference in Kolkata, Mamata said, “BJP rule was worse than that of Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin or Benito Mussolini”.

“The BJP-led central government is using the central agencies to interfere in the state’s affairs. It is bulldozing the federal structure of the country. There is Tughlaqi rule in force,” she said.

She stressed on the need to give complete “autonomy” to the central agencies in order to save democracy.

“The agencies must be granted autonomy and allowed to work impartially without any political interference,” she said in an apparent reference to the recent CBI raid on RJD national president and former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav’s residence.

Reacting to the central government’s recent cut in excise duty of petrol and diesel and a subsidy of Rs 200 on cooking gas to Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries, Mamata said, “They do this before any election. Only a small portion of BPL category is under Ujjwala Yojana. How poor people will buy domestic gas at a cost of Rs 800?”

After alleging that the Centre’s revenue collection from excise duty was huge, she said that her government will not be reducing state duties.