Opposition wants fuel rollback, Govt says no

New Delhi: Pranab Mukherjee's oil decision has fuelled what could turn into a political crisis. And the first walkout ever during a Budget speech.

In an unprecedented move on Friday, an entire Opposition and some UPA allies spontaneously got up and walked out of the Lok Sabha even as Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee read out his Budget speech. Left and Right came together in protest against the controversial decision to raise duties on petrol products. (Read: Petrol prices go up)

Outside, in an impromptu press briefing, the Opposition leaders thundered against the move, saying they would not allow Parliament to function unless there was a rollback. "I was listening to the budget intently but as soon as Finance Minster said that he is hiking the prices of petrol and diesel, the entire gathering felt that he had taken a decision anti to the interests of the common man, the farmers and the poor," said Leader of the Opposition and BJP leader Sushma Swaraj. BJP leader and former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha said his party would bring cut motions against the petro prices hike. (Watch: Left, NDA join forces against Budget)

But both minister of state with the Prime Minister's office Prithviraj Chavan and Parliamentary Affairs Minister P K Bansal have said there is "no question of a rollback". Lashing out at the Opposition walkout, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal described it as "the nadir of politics" and emphatically stated; "We have the numbers." (Watch: P K Bansal reacts to the Budget)

The numbers in Parliament for pushing this through is what will have the Congress internally worried. While it is touch and go in the Lok Sabha and it can pull it off, the party is likely to face embarrassment in the Rajya Sabha, where it does not have the numbers. (Watch: Jaswant reacts to Pranab's Budget)

Also, many in the Congress too are believed to be unhappy about the announcement, cornered as it has been on the food inflation issue. While no one is actually questioning the government's move to start withdrawing subsidies, it is the timing that is being questioned. Milind Deora, young Congress MP and son of Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said: "The timing of the hike is not right". (Watch: Timing of fuel hike not right, says Deora)

Congressmen also feel that this largely unpopular announcement should have come at the end of the Budget speech. The damage from an Opposition walkout would have been less then.

Government sources say the fuel hike is a "well-considered move" and Pranab Mukherjee will explain the decision to Congress MPs. 

Former ally and now daggers drawn, the CPIM accepted this walkout was unprecedented, but said they would continue. Senior leader Basudeb Acharya said: "We are completely against this and it has never happened before during the presentation of the budget that the Opposition has walked out. This is totally unprecedented because the way the prices are escalating and the duty of petrol and diesel have also been increased. To express our stance against this we, the Opposition, have walked out and we shall continue this."

The Opposition has clearly closed ranks and is unlikely to relent. Even UPA allies like the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) said everyone was united against the government on this. Lalu Prasad Yadav said: "Yet again the prices of diesel, petrol, fertilizer and cement have been increased which will have an impact of Rs 5 on other commodities. It will have a pernicious impact on those already burdened by poverty."

In his defence, the finance minister clarified that he had only removed concessions that were no longer required. "In my budget I have not put any new custom duties. All have already existed. As far as fuel hike goes, when it was required, we gave a concession, but a concession in the current situation is no longer required," he said. (Watch: Pranab defends fuel price hike)