Supreme Court Never Said E20 Blending Program Was ‘Experiment’: Attorney General Rejects ‘Completely False’ Reports | Today’s news
Attorney General (AG) R Venkataramani’s office on Monday clarified that the central government had never told the Supreme Court that the government’s E20 fuel program was an “experiment”.
The statement came after several media reports on June 30 quoted the attorney general as telling the Supreme Court during a hearing in the ethanol rationing dispute that the government’s program to achieve 20% ethanol blending in gasoline was an “ongoing experiment” and that its impact would become clearer next year.
When the statement went viral, it sparked backlash on social media, with some questioning“Where they come from, experiments are done on smaller samples and in a controlled environment. How can an entire country have a sample size for an experiment?”
Some even shared the alleged video from the AG who told the court that “blending 20% ethanol into gasoline is something the government is trying to ‘experiment’ with!”
What did the Attorney General say to clarify?
A day later, Venkataramani’s office called the reports “completely false” and said they did not reflect “anything close” to the proposals made to the Court.
“At no stage has there been any representation that the government’s Ethanol Blended Gasoline (EBP) program or E20 blending program is an ‘experiment,'” Venkataramani said in a statement. clarification issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice.
The statement added that any suggestion that the government termed the E20 program before the Supreme Court as an “experiment” was “incorrect” and did not represent suggestions made on behalf of the Union of India.
What was the case?
The clarification was related to proceedings before the Supreme Court on June 30 in a plea filed by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) challenging the Karnataka High Court’s order directing petroleum companies to reassess ethanol allocations for the 2025-26 supply year.
According to the AG’s office, the Attorney General has informed the Supreme Court that similar petitions regarding the allocation of ethanol to dedicated ethanol plants are pending in various high courts across the country.
“During the hearing, the learned Attorney General stated that similar suits relating to the same issues relating to allocation of ethanol to dedicated ethanol plants are currently pending in various High Courts,” the statement said.
“The Supreme Court has been informed that petitions are being filed to transfer such cases to the Supreme Court to jointly adjudicate common questions of legal interpretation arising from the same contractual framework to avoid concurrent proceedings and the possibility of conflicting decisions, if at all,” he added.
“This move is also likely to enable an expedited resolution of the dispute so that ethanol supplies to OMCs to maintain 20% gasoline blending throughout the year will not be affected under the Ethanol Blended Petrol Program, which is a national program,” it said.
