Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday, 19 May launched a sharp attack on the Centre over the second increase in petrol and diesel prices in less than a week, accusing the government of offloading the cost of its own policy failures onto ordinary citizens. The hike was implemented by state-run oil marketing companies amid rising global crude oil prices.

Kharge's Charge on the Fuel Hike

Posting on social media platform X, Kharge said: 'It has been barely four days since the last price hike, and the Modi government has once again raised the prices of petrol and diesel. After setting the stage with elaborate rhetoric and preaching the virtues of frugality, the process of shifting the burden of their own failures onto the public is currently in full swing.'

The Congress leader argued that the back-to-back hikes exposed a fundamental contradiction in the government's public messaging — projecting fiscal discipline while repeatedly passing fuel costs to consumers.

Attack on India's Oil Import Diplomacy

Kharge also trained his fire on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over India's handling of Russian oil imports, alleging that the government had been compelled to seek a one-month extension from the United States just to continue purchasing Russian crude. 'Mr. Modi — who falsely boasts of being a “Vishwa Guru” (Global Leader) — has had to plead and beg the United States just to secure a one-month “extension” of the “permission” to purchase Russian oil. By doing this repeatedly, he wounds the self-respect of 1.4 billion Indians. No previous government has ever resorted to such measures before,' he said.

He then questioned the government's logic: if India had secured permission to buy Russian oil, why were consumers still bearing elevated fuel prices?

BJP Accused of Lacking Foresight

Kharge accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of being consumed by electoral considerations at the expense of economic management. 'I reiterate once again: the BJP suffers from a severe lack of foresight and leadership,' he said, alleging that when the crisis struck, the ruling party remained preoccupied with elections and resorted to smooth-talking rhetoric while devising what he described as a plan to loot the public.

He also dismissed what he called sponsored overseas publicity campaigns as insufficient grounds for claiming global leadership. 'One does not become a “Vishwa Guru” merely by engaging in sponsored PR campaigns abroad... Mr. Modi, one must demonstrate accountability towards the public,' Kharge said in his post.

A Direct Message to the Prime Minister

Concluding his remarks, Kharge drew a pointed contrast between optics and governance, saying the public had no interest in trivialities such as how one eats mangoes or what tonic one consumes, and demanded concrete answers on the fuel crisis. 'You will truly earn the title of the public's “Pradhan Sevak” only if you provide answers regarding what you are personally doing to address this crisis; otherwise, you will remain nothing more than a mere “Pracharak,”' he said.

This is the second major opposition broadside against the Centre on fuel pricing in a week, and comes as global crude prices continue to exert pressure on India's import bill. With no indication of a rollback, the political temperature over fuel costs is likely to remain elevated in the days ahead.