Andhra Pradesh government late on Wednesday decided to reduce Value Added Tax (VAT) by 2 per cent on petrol, bringing its price down by Rs1.19 per litre, a move which has been approved by the Election Commission (EC) ahead of the June 12 byelections in the state.
The state government sought the EC's permission to reduce petrol price as the model code of conduct is in force for the bypolls for 18 assembly seats and one Lok Sabha constituency.
The permission has been given by the poll panel, official sources said here. An official release said Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy has given his consent for reducing VAT on petrol and a formal order in this regard would be issued tomorrow.