'On Aug 4, at 12 pm': Kejriwal plans march to PM's residence with '100 who don't fear jail' over E20 concerns

The scheduled march marks the latest in a series of attacks by the AAP targeted towards the Centre's fuel-blending policy.

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.

Also Read I Better ride quality, lower fuel average: Nitin Gadkari to Parliament on how E20 petrol affects vehicles

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.

Also Read I Tehseen Poonawalla claims house arrest ahead of hunger strike over E20 petrol: ‘Nitin Gadkari is scared’

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.

Also Read I ₹30 per litre during crude price spike: Govt">E20 petrol saved consumers nearly ₹30 per litre during crude price spike: Govt

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.

Stuti Gupta is a Content Producer at Hindustan Times, based in New Delhi, where she is a part of the General News team, tasked with reporting on happenings across the country impacting domestic as well as international ecospheres. In her role at HT, she is responsible for keeping a track of incoming news updates, packaging stories and publishing them in a format best suited to their purpose. She holds a Bachelor’s in Mass Communication and Journalism from St Xavier’s, Mumbai and is partial towards working on international affairs. Apart from her interest in the geopolitical world, she is a keen reader, writer, orator, debater and learner who loves picking up new information. She has been recognized for her previous literary work at the international level with a Gold Finalist, Gold and Silver Award in various participating years at the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition along with winning the third prize and getting her story published in Children’s World in 2017. Barring academic and professional pursuits, she has a passion for travelling to new places, exploring new cultures and cuisines, documenting them through words and pictures and interacting with people from diverse backgrounds. She is also an avid enthusiast of studying art forms such as cinema, dance, theatre and music as a tool for cultural storytelling and actively participates in them.Read More