Price rise during UPA govt predictable : Nitish

Patna, Jan 17 (PTI) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumartoday criticised the Congress-led UPA government for the"escalating" price rise and inflation during its rule and saidthat there has been symbiotic relation between the Congressand price rise over the years.

"The Congress and price rise predictably go hand inhand. Whenever the party comes to power, it automaticallyleads to price rise," he told reporters in reply to a questionon his reaction on the latest petroleum price hike.

"We are not suprised at the escalating price rise andinflation during the UPA rule....let us not expect prices tofall down so long as the Congress-led coalition government isruling the country," he said.

The Congress has neither will power nor a policy todeal sternly with the price rise issue, Kumar said anddescribed meetings of the central ministers on the issue as a"public relation exercise".

He said that the NDA government has been trying itsbest to rein in prices through its deterrent measures againsthoarders and black marketeers as a matter of duty.

The Chief Minister said that frequent increase inpetroleum prices was an attack on the federal structure ofthe country.

The state governments found themselves helpless incontaining price rise on their own due to repeated increase inprices of petroleum products having a multiplier effect on theprices of various commodities, he said.