Chandigarh, July 29, 2020: All petrol pumps in Punjab will remain shut today after Petrol Pump Dealers Association, Punjab, gave a state-wide call to shut petrol pumps demanding justice for one of its members, Gurkirpal Singh Chawla, who ended his life at a hotel in Panchkula on July 25.
Chawla, who owned a petrol pump in Mohali, allegedly committed suicide due to disparity in fuel prices in Punjab and its neighbouring states which caused huge revenue loss. What added to his woes and that of other petrol pump owners in the state are dwindling sales due to Covid-19 pandemic.
“The onus of his death primarily lies with the HPCL and then the VAT policies of the Government of Punjab and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, who failed to address the issues of the petrol pump dealers seeking price correction and increased margins to cover up for the losses due to the pandemic,” said Paramjit Singh Doaba, president of the association.
“This is just the beginning of a dark chapter of suicides by petro dealers. More such incidents are waiting to happen if the HPCL and the other three oil marketing companies, the Punjab Government and the MoPNG did not consider the plight of the petroleum dealers’ fraternity and give justice to Chawla,” said Manjeet Singh, general secretary of the association.
