Political opposition to economic reforms grew as a key ally of the UPA government on Thursday raised the red flag to plans to open up the economy further to foreign investors. The political uncertainty in the aftermath of the national auditor's report on coal block allocations also triggered worries about the fate of the government's reform steps, which economists say are crucial to boost growth and sentiment. The Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee after meeting the finance minister Chidambaram, said her party was opposed to any plans to allow foreign investment in multi-brand retail, insurance, aviation and pension sectors. The TMC chief had also forced the government to put on hold its decision to allow foreign investment in the multi-brand retail sector until a consensus was reached. The government is also unlikely to hike prices of fuel and fertilizers and the union finance minister is stating that There is no proposal as of now to increase the administered prices of petroleum products and fertilizers. Drought in some parts of the country has also made the government's task of raising diesel and cooking gas prices difficult. The central bank and rating agencies have voiced concerns about the health of public finances due to the impact of unwieldy subsidies.