E20 Fuel Protest In Delhi: Tehseen Poonawalla, Car Owners Stage Protest; What Are Their Demands?

Published: Sunday, July 5, 2026, 22:34 [IST]

Well, Jantar Mantar is now witnessing new wave of protest - no its not the cockroaches but the car owners and activists who have gathered on Sunday against the Centre's E20 petrol policy.

AI Summary

AI-generated summary, reviewed by editors

Activists, including Tehseen Poonawalla, protested at Jantar Mantar against the Centre's E20 petrol policy, alleging vehicle damage and lower mileage, while the government refutes these claims, citing tests showing no harm and promoting E20 as beneficial for reducing oil imports and pollution.

Their slogan was "Humari Gaadi, Humara Adhikar" and also claimed that it is India's first on ground protest against the E20 fuel.

Who held the protest?

The so called first time protest against the E20 fule was organised by entrepreneur and tv personality - Tehseen Poonawalla and his team Bharat. The protesters claim that E20 petrol is causing lower mileage, engine trouble and costly repairs in the vehicle.

Well in the contrary, the government however has called these claims false and says that the testing showed no proof that E20 fuel harms vehicles made of it.

Grateful
We have 4 demands
* Availability of E0, E5, E10 & E20 blended fuels!
* All documents wrt E20 including ARAI report in Public domain
* Solution for pre 2023 vehicles damaged
* no future rollout without 360°infrastructure being ready!#EthanolScam BETA BADHAO YOJNA https://t.co/jyswNl9cpB
— Tehseen Poonawalla Official 🇮🇳 (@tehseenp) July 5, 2026

Why Car Owners Are Angry

It all started with the ethanol chaos. The government's ethanol blended petrol programme is meant to reduce India's need for imported oil and under the E20 fuel system, petrol has 20% ethanol and 80% petrol.

Hence the reduction of fuel usage will help to cut fuel imports, reduce pollution and support farmers.

But here's the clash! Many car owners believe that older vehicles were not made to run on E20 fuel. Speaking to the media, an IT professional from Gurugram said that his mileage of his 2018 car dropped sharply after he started using E20 petrol.

Another Delhi resident said, his car had problems after months of using the blended fuel and the repair bill crossed Rs 35,000 and so he is worried about using E20 again.
Many protesters also said they want the freedom to choose between normal petrol and ethanol-blended petrol.

This video tell you exactly what Team Bharat is asking for!
* We have 4 demands:

Availability of E0 E5, E10 & E20 blended fuels !
* all documents wrt E20 including ARAI report in Public domain
* solution for pre 2023 vehicles damged
* no future rollout without… pic.twitter.com/IdhuEMhUJM
— Tehseen Poonawalla Official 🇮🇳 (@tehseenp) July 5, 2026

Government Stands Firm

Ahead of the protest the experts from the auto and energy sectors backed the E20 fuel idea and said that the testing has not shown any problem. Attorney General R. Venkataramani also said earlier that the move to 20% ethanol blending is government policy and is unlikely to change.

𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐯𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞. 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐮𝐞𝐥 𝐠𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐭.

𝐍𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐄𝟐𝟎.

𝐍𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 “𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤!

Team Bharat is calling every Indian to rise:

𝐖𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐃:

Full, easy… pic.twitter.com/pkAKXzkx1J
— Tehseen Poonawalla Official 🇮🇳 (@tehseenp) July 5, 2026

Demand For The Right To Choose

One of the key demand of the protest was that people should be allowed to choose between regular petrol and ethanol blended petrol. They also said that petrol without ethanol is available only at few outlets and costs much more that many people cannot afford. They also asked why separate pumps or storage tanks for different fuel types are not available more widely.

Published On July 5, 2026