Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday reiterated that the spike in the price of petrol and diesel in the country was because of the depreciation in the value of the Indian Rupee against the US dollar. Pradhan also said one of the reasons behind the rise could be the decrease in the production of oil in the countries that produce them.

Launching a scathing attack at the Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government in Odisha, who urged the Centre to reduce taxes on oil prices, Pradhan claimed that the state government was "shedding crocodile tears" over the price hike.