The Maharashtra Congress alleged that the Centre had taken away Rs 30,000 crore from the state government collected through cess levied on fuel in the last seven months.

Speaking to reporters, state Congress chief Nana Patole said the Union government has imposed cess in various forms on fuel, which came up to Rs 30,000 crore between April 1 and October 31. "The Union government had given its first blow to the Maharashtra government by holding back GST rebate for months. To worsen the financial crisis, the Centre levied cess in various forms on fuel. It has used various legal means and administrative loopholes to minimise the state government's earnings from the sale of petrol and diesel in the state," Patole claimed.