Dharwad: Speaking to the media here today regarding the continuous spike in LPG and fuel prices across the country, Karnataka Labor Minister Santosh Lad launched a fierce attack against the Central Government and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi. "This cannot be dismissed as mere political criticism; we need to question the center's failures from the perspective of national security and economic stability," Lad remarked.
"No Increase in Fuel Storage Capacity in 12 Years!"
Attributing the soaring fuel prices to a lack of strategic storage, Minister Lad made some serious allegations against the central government:
BJP's Failure: Back in 2014, the country had a crude oil storage capacity of 5.3 million metric tonnes. However, since the BJP came to power, no real effort has been made to increase this storage capacity over the last 12 years.
Ignored Arun Jaitley's Proposal: The late Arun Jaitley, as the then Finance Minister, had proposed increasing the storage by an additional 6 million metric tonnes. Yet, this government failed to implement it.
Global Examples: Countries like Japan and China have already stockpiled enough fuel reserves to last them a whole year. The central government owes an answer to the citizens of this country on this front. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, being the local MP, must come forward and clarify this.
Davanagere Bypolls: Discontent in Muslim Community is Natural
When asked about the dissatisfaction brewing within the Muslim community regarding the Davanagere by-election, Lad said, "It is quite natural for the Muslim community to feel upset. However, our state leaders have already spoken to them and pacified the situation. They have also ensured that the rebel candidates withdraw their nomination papers. I am joining the campaign trail today, and I am highly confident that Congress candidates will win in both constituencies."
On Anti-DKS Sloganeering:
Regarding the incident where slogans were raised against KPCC President and Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar, Lad stated that he had no information on the matter. He added that whenever such minor differences of opinion arise in the public eye, the party high command always steps in to resolve them smoothly.