Tehseen Poonawalla claims house arrest ahead of E20 protest, targets Gadkari

Activist Tehseen Poonawalla, who announced a protest march to Gandhi Smriti and a hunger strike over the E20 fuel policy, claimed he was put under house arrest by the Delhi Police on Saturday.

Activist Tehseen Poonawalla claimed that he was put under house arrest by Delhi Police ahead of his protest march and hunger strike against the government's E20 petrol policy. Poonawalla, who has launched a crusade against Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and ethanol-blended fuel, put out several videos showing cops at his doorstep on Saturday.

"An entire battalion of Delhi Police, including women officers, has put me under house arrest! Nitin Gadkari is scared of ethanol," Poonawalla tweeted. In another video, the activist is seen asking a police officer how he could be detained without any documents.

"No papers, nothing. I am under house arrest... Azaadi ke 15 din pehle aap mujhe detain kar rahe (you are detaining me 15 days before Independence Day)," Poonawalla is heard telling the cop. To this, the police officer said that his protest march might create a law and order situation and asked him to cooperate.

Following the Cockroach Janta Party's month-long protest over exam paper leaks, which resulted in the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Poonawalla has sought to tap into the growing public frustration with E20 petrol.

The government's rollout of E20 petrol - a blend of 80% petrol and 20% ethanol - has come under intense criticism from opposition parties and consumer groups.

Several vehicle owners (pre-2023) have claimed E20 has resulted in a reduction in mileage and higher maintenance costs.

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