The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) pointed out that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has prioritised crony interests over national welfare, noting that he allowed petrol and diesel to be sold at ₹95–₹104 per litre despite India purchasing crude oil at discounted rates from Russia. Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh highlighted that Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani bought 77 million barrels of discounted Russian crude in six months, resold it abroad, and pocketed ₹50,000 crore, while the public saw no benefit. The AAP MP charged that Modi is “auctioning the country” to his friends Adani and Ambani, and demanded the PM disclose how many thousands of crores were saved from cheap Russian crude and how much of that saving actually reached Indians.
Addressing a press conference on Monday, senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, “US President Donald Trump had imposed a 50% tariff on India, and despite repeated demands, PM Modi has failed to take a firm stand to safeguard India’s trade interests or send a clear message to the United States. Instead, PM Modi resorted to rhetoric, trying to portray himself as standing up for farmers and the public to avoid appearing under US pressure.”
Presenting key facts, the senior AAP leader said PM Modi’s decisions consistently serve his friends rather than the nation’s interest. After the Russia–Ukraine war, while most of the world stopped buying oil and other commodities from Russia, India justified continued purchases by claiming Russian crude was cheaper. Singh stated that Ambani’s Reliance Group bought massive quantities of this discounted crude, signing a deal in January 2025 to import 500,000 barrels per day from Russia for processing at its Jamnagar refinery.
“Buying cheaper crude from Russia should have benefited the Indian people — cheaper diesel would have helped farmers, and cheaper petrol would have eased the burden on the common man. But today, diesel and petrol are still selling between ₹95 and ₹104 per litre,” Sanjay Singh said.
He questioned whether these crude oil purchases have actually benefited farmers or the public at all. “The Prime Minister must present figures showing how much discounted oil was bought from Russia and what benefit the people of this country received. PM Modi has no such answer because only his close friend Ambani has gained enormously,” Sanjay Singh charged.
The AAP MP noted that PM Modi is willing to auction off the country to Adani and Ambani, citing the government’s silence when Adani faced a lawsuit in the US, which was resolved without action and in Adani’s favour. “What about the fate of crores of Indians?” Sanjay Singh asked.
Providing detailed figures for the last six months, Sanjay Singh revealed that India purchased 231 million barrels of crude from Russia, of which Reliance alone bought 77 million barrels. While this could have been processed into diesel and petrol for domestic consumption at cheaper rates, Sanjay Singh pointed out that Ambani exported the processed fuel abroad at high prices, earning ₹50,000 crore in just six months. “That ₹50,000 crore should have gone to the people of India. Instead, PM Modi is lying to the country and dumping the interests of traders and citizens into the gutter to protect his friends,” asserted the AAP MP.
He said the truth is now clear — PM Modi works for his capitalist friends, not for the nation. Calling the deal “a scam worth lakhs of crores,” Sanjay Singh demanded a serious investigation. “When Adani’s case in the US threatened arrest, America forced PM Modi into a ceasefire. Now, with the Russian crude oil matter, Modi is again making grand claims about serving farmers and resisting US pressure, when in reality he is already under pressure and has played a multi-billion-rupee game with his friends,” said senior AAP leader.
Concluding, Sanjay Singh demanded that PM Modi answer directly: “Since India began buying cheap crude from Russia, how many thousands of crores worth of oil have we imported? How much money have we saved? Of that saving, how many thousands of crores have benefited the people of this country? And how much has gone into the pockets of your friends?”