Dhaka, Oct. 7 -- The Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) on Tuesday termed the proposal to double the gas price for the fertilizer industry a "conspiracy to destroy the country's agricultural economy" and urged the government to immediately back away from what it called an "anti-people move."

In a statement, CPB President Sajjad Zahir Chandan and General Secretary Abdullah Kafi Ratan alleged that instead of resolving the gas crisis, the interim government was moving to double prices while failing to ensure adequate gas supply to industries.

They claimed that an artificial fertilizer crisis had already been created to push the country's agriculture towards import dependence.

The CPB leaders warned that the proposed gas price hike would ...