NEW DELHI: Madhya Pradesh minister and BJP MLA Kailash Vijayvargiya on Wednesday said sugar should become expensive and advised people above 40 to avoid consuming it, as opposition parties stepped up criticism over rising sugar prices ahead of the festive season.Speaking to reporters in Indore, Vijayvargiya said sugar should ideally be sold cheaply only through government fair-price shops for children, while older people should avoid it altogether.“I say that (sugar) should become very expensive. (Sugar) should only be available at cheap rates at government fair price shops for children… The elderly should not be given sugar at all,” the BJP leader said.Vijayvargiya, who said he does not eat sweets himself, claimed that 90% of people no longer like sweets. He added that doctors, particularly those practising Ayurveda, did not consider sugar consumption advisable for people above 40.“If you are over 40, you can eat jaggery once in a while, but avoid sugar completely,” he said.His remarks drew a sharp response from Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari, who accused BJP leaders of making light of the concerns of people facing inflation.
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Patwari said BJP leaders had come to power promising to control inflation but were instead “insulting and ridiculing” poor and middle-class families with such statements. He warned that voters would respond to the BJP in upcoming elections.“The country is watching the BJP leaders. People will give a befitting reply to their laughter in the upcoming elections. Then we will see whether they retain their smiles or shed tears,” he said.Meanwhile, retail sugar prices rose for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, government data showed. The all-India average retail price increased to Rs 65.05 per kg on August 26 from Rs 63.97 per kg a day earlier, an increase of more than Rs 1 per kg.The rise came despite ex-mill sugar prices falling by nearly 20% following the government’s decision to allow imports of 10 lakh tonnes of raw sugar.
