He made the accusation yesterday at a press briefing at the party’s Naya Paltan central office in Dhaka.
Rizvi said: “The government has decided to hike gas price although the state-run gas companies are making overwhelming profits. The government is doubling the price only nine months after the last hike. It is not at all clear for what reason the price is being doubled.”
“We strongly oppose this decision of the government”, he added.
Rizvi said: “On behalf of the BNP, I would like to condemn and protest this unfair and anti-people price hike.”
He further said: “The lives of common people have already become unbearable due to increasing price hikes of daily essentials. In this context, increased gas price would add insult to injury, putting negative impact on people’s daily lives.”
Also Read- BERC: No decision yet on gas price hike
Earlier in August, Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission (BERC) held an eight-day public hearing on gas transmission tariff and user-end price hike proposals submitted by seven state-owned gas transmission and distribution companies.
The companies initially proposed a massive 85% price hike for household users: Tk1,200 per month for double-burner stoves and Tk1,100 for single-burner stoves.
In addition, they proposed a 140% increase for consumers using meter-based burners, increasing the price from Tk7 to Tk16.8 per cubic metre of gas.
The government does not want the price hike to be implemented before February next year, said Rahman Murshed, an official of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources.
The gas prices were last revised on September 1 last year.
After the revised prices are put into effect, household users will have to pay Tk750 every month instead of the current Tk650 for double-burner stoves, and Tk700 instead of the current Tk600 for single-burner stoves, said a BERC official.
The proposal also asked to increase the prices of gas used for industrial purposes, i.e. power plants, tea gardens, fertiliser companies and different factories.
Thursday, June 04, 2026
