Raebareli (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 19 (ANI): Launching a fierce attack on the central government's fiscal policies, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Tuesday warned that India is on the brink of an unprecedented 'economic storm.' He claimed that the financial modifications made by the Prime Minister would inevitably collapse, with the common citizen bearing the heaviest burden.

Addressing the media and public during his visit to his parliamentary constituency of Raebareli, the senior Congress leader alleged that the current economic architecture has been systematically rigged to benefit a chosen few billionaires at the expense of the working class.

Gandhi emphasised that while major corporate figures and political leaders remain entirely insulated within their palaces, the real impact of the looming shock will devastate the youth, farmers, labourers, and small business owners of Uttar Pradesh.

He further chided Prime Minister Narendra Modi for travelling abroad frequently while simultaneously asking citizens to curb their foreign travels instead of addressing internal structural crises.

'For several days now, I have been saying that the economic structure Modi ji has altered, and an economic storm is coming now. The structure he has erected in favour of Adani and Ambani will not endure; it is destined to collapse completely. The tragedy is that the common people will bear the brunt. They will continue to sit in their palaces, but the youth of UP and the people of UP will be the ones to suffer the full impact of this shock', Gandhi said.

'The economic shock that is coming will not affect Adani, Ambani, and Modi. Instead, it will affect the youth, farmers, labourers, and small business owners of Uttar Pradesh. It is poised to strike with a severity perhaps unseen in many years; a very difficult period lies ahead. Instead of taking concrete action, Narendra Modi is telling the nation not to go on foreign trips, but he is roaming around the globe', he said.

Meanwhile, launching a scathing attack on the Central government over the recent spike in fuel rates, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday termed the ongoing economic distress a 'Modi-government-made crisis.' He accused the ruling dispensation of shifting the burden of its strategic failures onto the common public while giving corporate entities a 'free pass.'

'Just four days after the price hike, the Modi government has once again increased the prices of petrol and diesel. Having set the full stage, preaching about savings while shifting the burden of their failures onto the public, this effort is in full swing.

'Robbing the common people and giving Adani a free pass from America'--this is Modi ji's Compromised Model. Modi ji, who fills the air with false pride about being the world's guru, has begged and pleaded with America for a one-month extension on 'permission' to buy Russian oil. Every time he does this, he wounds the pride of 1.4 billion Indians. No previous government has ever stooped to this level', Kharge said.

Energy markets have experienced sustained volatility following a series of kinetic strikes tied to the broader West Asian crisis, sparking widespread fears of disruptions to global energy distribution networks.

People from across the country have expressed their disappointment over the price hike on petrol and diesel after the government increased the rice on fuel by 90 paise per litre on Tuesday.

In Delhi, petrol prices rose by 87 paise, climbing from Rs 97.77 to Rs 98.64 per litre, while diesel prices increased by 91 paise, moving from Rs 90.67 to Rs 91.58 per litre.

India's oil trade deficit is set to widen sharply in FY27 as rising crude prices, weakening petroleum exports and the country's heavy dependence on imported oil place renewed stress on external balances, according to a report by Crisil. (ANI)