Former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced a march to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence in New Delhi on August 4 at 12 pm to submit a petition demanding three key changes in Centre's E20 fuel policy. According to Kejriwal, the petition has been digitally signed by more than two lakh people.
The announcement marks the latest move by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to escalate its campaign against the Centre's mandatory ethanol-blending policy. The party has been amplifying concerns raised by several vehicle owners, who allege that E20 petrol is damaging engines and reducing fuel efficiency.
A 100-member march to the PM's residence
While addressing a townhall programme outside the Constitution Club in New Delhi on Saturday, Kejriwal revealed his bid to launch a march to the prime minister's residence in order to demand a more fair fuel policy.
“Earlier, I asked you to sign a petition addressed to the Prime Minister. More than 2,00,000 people have signed it online, and I have taken printouts of those signatures. On Tuesday, the 4th, at 12:00 PM, I will personally go to the Prime Minister's residence to hand over the petition,” he said in his address.
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{{/usCountry}}The AAP leader further noted that he did not require a large crowd to accompany him in this endeavour and instead asked for 100 volunteers who are “not afraid of police batons”.
“There is no need for everyone to come along. I will take 100 people with me who are not afraid of police batons,” he said. “I will take 100 people with me who are not afraid of going to jail. Those who wish to join should write to me, tag me and send me a message. We will take 100 people with us, march toward the Prime Minister's residence, and then see what happens.”
What are Kejriwal's 3 demands?
During the run of the programme, Kejriwal put forth three key demands in front of the central government in relation to its current fuel policy: an option to pick between E20 and pure patrol at pumps, to make E20 cheaper than pure petrol, and to fix the price of petrol below the ₹84/litre mark.
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In a further appeal, Kejriwal also requested people to refrain from purchasing petrol and diesel vehicles until E100 vehicles are manufactured in the country.
What is the ongoing E-20 controversy
This development is the latest in a series of attacks launched by the AAP towards the Centre for its fuel-blending policy. Kejriwal pointed out repeated inconsistencies in the statements given by Union ministers in response to concerns surrounding vehicle damage due to ethanol use.
"On one side they say E20 is good, on the other side they say E20 is bad. One ministry says there is a difference of 2 per cent to 5 per cent, while another ministry says 4 per cent. They haven't conducted any study; they are just forcing the policy onto the people... Vehicles are getting damaged and mileage is dropping. Why is the Government forcing this on people? What is the interest of Govt in this? E20 petrol is not good," Kejriwal told reporters, as per ANI.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, however, refuted “misleading claims” regarding E-20, insisting that there is "no verified evidence of widespread engine damage" linked to the fuel following years of scientific vetting and real-world usage across crores of vehicles.
The Centre further claimed that E-15 plus petrol had been in use for over three and a half years while E19-E20 fuel has been in circulation for more than two and a half years and over 20 crore two-wheelers and more than 3 crore petrol cars have operated on these fuel blends successfully without verified systemic failures.