India, Aug. 4 -- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Monday announced that he would lead a march to the Prime Minister's residence on Tuesday to submit a public petition opposing the "forceful imposition" of E20-blended petrol. Kejriwal said he would leave the AAP headquarters at noon with 100 people to personally hand over a petition signed by 2,33,238 people and seek a meeting with the Prime Minister over concerns surrounding ethanol-blended fuel. Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal said people across the country were "deeply troubled" by E20-blended petrol, alleging that vehicle mileage was declining and vehicles were being damaged.
He questioned the government's continued push for ethanol-blended fuel, saying it had provided neither answers nor justification for the policy and alleging that this raised suspicions of a "hidden agenda". Kejriwal also referred to an allegation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had come under pressure from US President Donald Trump to import ethanol from the United States. He claimed that, according to one estimate, Modi would purchase $20 billion worth of ethanol from Trump over the next five years, with the fuel then being imposed on consumers in India. Referring to the AAP's recent campaign, Kejriwal said the 'National Town Hall Against E20', held on Saturday, was an "overwhelming success", with the venue packed, large crowds gathered outside and nearly 700,000 people watching the event live online. He said the response demonstrated the level of public support for the campaign. Kejriwal alleged E20 critics faced trolling and FIR threats; AAP's petition garnered 2,33,238 signatures, while his request for a PM meeting remained unanswered.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.