BHUBANESWAR: The Biju Janata Dal BJD ) on Friday announced that it would launch a statewide agitation against the steep hike in the price of petrol and diesel despite a fall in that of crude oil on the international market.Hitting out at Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan , known as the most prominent face of BJP in the state, BJD said members of the students, youth, and women's wing would stage demonstrations in all district headquarters from Monday. "We will continue the agitations unless the Centre brings down the prices of petrol and diesel," the party's general secretary Sanjay Das Burma told reporters during a news conference here.He said the price of crude oil, which was 108.37 dollar per barrel on the international market in June 2014, had reduced to 49.96 dollar per barrel. "Instead of taking steps to bring down the price of petrol and diesel, the Union petroleum minister has ruled out an immediate reduction of fuel prices. Such a price rise has a tremendous impact on the common man. The Union minister seems to be serving the interests of the oil companies," Das Burma said.BJD vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra , who was present in the news conference, said the Centre had also increased excise duty on petroleum products and this had resulted in high prices of petrol, diesel and LPG cylinders.Mishra claimed that VAT on petrol and diesel in Odisha (27.26%) was lower than that in BJP-ruled states such as Madhya Pradesh (39.75%), Gujarat (28.96%), Chhattisgarh (29.68%), Rajasthan (32.81%) and Uttar Pradesh (31.17%).In reaction, BJP spokesperson Dilip Mohanty accused BJD of misleading the people over the price rise. He said the state government earned a huge amount of tax from petrol and diesel.

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