A worker receives a cash payment as he fills fuel into a vehicle at a petrol pump following the hike in petrol and diesel prices, in Nagpur. File.
| Photo Credit: ANI
The Opposition Congress and NCP (SP) on Wednesday (May 20, 2026) attacked the Maharashtra government over reports of fuel shortages in parts of the State and asked if “even the oil in the engines of the double-engine government has run out”.
Congress Legislature Party leader Vijay Wadettiwar and NCP (SP) MLA Jayant Patil cited incidents where a police vehicle sent to search for a missing girl in Nagpur apparently did not have diesel, and attack on a petrol pump worker in Jalgaon over alleged fuel shortage.
People in the State were facing a lack of security and fuel shortage, while taxpayer-funded advertising hoardings continued to shine ahead of elections, Mr. Wadettiwar claimed.
Amid the ongoing West Asia crisis, the central government has maintained that there is no shortage of petrol, diesel or LPG.
Former State minister Patil, in a post on X, said, “In Jalgaon, some unidentified persons stabbed a petrol pump worker in the stomach after being told there was no petrol. In Buldhana district, people stood in queues for 12 hours hoping to get petrol.” At Washim Naka, there were fights over petrol and diesel. In Nagpur, police do not have diesel (for their vehicles) to search for a missing girl, the former State NCP (SP) chief claimed.
“What exactly is going on? Has even the oil in the engines of the double-engine government run out?” Mr. Patil asked.
The ruling alliance commonly uses the term ‘double-engine government’ to describe its party being in power simultaneously at the Centre and in a State.
Referring to the incidents mentioned by Mr. Patil, Mr. Wadettiwar claimed Maharashtra was facing a complete administrative breakdown amid the ongoing fuel shortage, and that the BJP-led “triple-engine government” (referring to its rule at the Centre, in the state and local bodies) had come to a standstill.
A petrol pump employee was attacked over fuel in Jalgaon, a man was left stranded in the scorching sun for 12 hours in Buldhana, and in Akola, a common citizen risked his life to obtain fuel, he said in a post on X.
“The worst part is that in Nagpur, even a police vehicle sent to search for a missing girl did not have diesel,” he said.
Mr. Wadettiwar said the situation exposed what he described as the hollowness of the BJP’s claims of building a “Viksit Bharat” (Developed India).
“For years, they have boasted about a double-engine government, but today not even one engine is functioning,” he quipped.
“Ordinary people are struggling for every drop of petrol and for their right to live, while the rulers in Delhi are busy singing false praises of ‘Amrit Kaal’,” he charged.
Today, Maharashtra has no government; what remains is only a marketplace of advertisements,” Mr. Wadettiwar said, accusing those in power of ignoring public anger and distress.
Published – May 20, 2026 01:33 pm IST
