Modi's government came to power by fooling people: Lalu on railway fare hike

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Friday said that Prime Minster Narendra Modi's government has come to power by making a fool of people.

"Prime Minster Narendra Modi's government came to power by making a fool of people. They have fired cannon on people's chest. Whenever the NDA comes to power, it sucks out people's blood," said Yadav.

"Before my stint in ministry, the NDA was in power. They wanted to privatize railways and when I became minister, the Indian Railways in crisis, the workers were not even sure about their salaries," he said.

"We try to keep decreasing railway fares with every budget. Over two third diesel of country's diesel is consumed by railways, but still we make profit. Yet they have taken this decision," he added.

The centre has reportedly announced a steep hike in railway passenger and freight fares with effect from today.

Passenger fares have been increased by 14.2 percent, while freight charges have been increased by 6.5 percent respectively.