Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday ruled out increasing duty on diesel cars or introducing dual pricing for the fuel, as is speculated in certain quarters.
“There are no proposals for introducing dual pricing for diesel or increase in duties for bridging any perceived shortfalls in tax revenues, as has been highlighted by a speculating media in the past couple of days,” Mukherhee said at a CII function here.
He called these kinds of steps as regressive measures and assured the industry not to fear that the government will resort to these moves.
Speculations about dual pricing for diesel or raising tax on diesel cars were rife after the Finance Minister had said in Parliament on Thursday that passenger cars accounted for about 15 per cent of the total diesel consumption in the country and the government could consider the suggestion to remove subsidy for this segment.
The statement had seen auto stocks coming under heavy selling pressure on Thursday. However, later in the day Mukherjee had clarified that the government had in-principle taken a decision to decontrol prices. “We are moving in that direction. There are no other proposals under the consideration of the government,” he had said.