Sanjay Raut alleged that it is the people of BJP who are tarnishing the image of Nitin Gadkari. Whereas Arvind Kejriwal has demanded to increase the price of petrol to Rs 82 and E20 fuel to Rs 70 per litre. Raut also described Sharad Pawar as the supreme leader of MVA.
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [भारत]July 10 (ANI): Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Friday alleged that leaders within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were trying to tarnish the image of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari. He claimed that he was being targeted because he was a strong contender for the post of Prime Minister.
‘BJP is defaming Gadkari’
The Shiv Sena (UBT) leader said, “Gadkari saheb should give a presentation on this entire issue. The confusion that has been created in the minds of people is because of people from his own party.” He further said, “Those trying to defame Nitin Gadkari are none other than the people of Bharatiya Janata Party. They want to implicate him in some way or the other.”
The UBT Sena leader further said, “Just like before in 2014, when discussions were going on for his second term as party president, there were also attempts to implicate him.”
Raut alleged, “He is a strong contender for the post of Prime Minister. Therefore, defame him, defame him so much that people’s perception of him gets spoiled. All this is being done by people from his own party, and he also knows it.”
Politics on petrol and diesel prices
Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday demanded reduction in petrol and diesel prices, saying “pure petrol” should be made available at Rs 82 per liter and E20 fuel at around Rs 70 per litre.
Addressing the media in New Delhi, Kejriwal said, “Pure petrol should be available in our country at Rs 82 per litre; and if we switch to E20 fuel, I believe the price should come down further to around Rs 70 per litre, whereas currently Rs 102 is being charged for E20 petrol.”
He said diesel prices can also be reduced in a similar manner and claimed that lower fuel prices will help in providing relief from inflation. “We can calculate diesel prices in a similar manner; diesel prices can also be reduced. If petrol and diesel prices come down, I believe it will deliver a significant blow to inflation and provide much-needed relief to the people,” Kejriwal said.
He further said, “On behalf of the people of this country, I demand that the government immediately start supplying pure petrol at Rs 82 per litre, and if E20 is to be supplied, the price should be even lower.”
The comments come days after Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said reduction in retail petrol and diesel prices would become a “legitimate question” if global crude oil prices remain at current levels for the next few weeks, while he cautioned that it would be premature to speculate on immediate price cuts.
‘Concerns over E20 fuel are wrong’
Puri had also defended the government’s ethanol blending program and dismissed concerns over E20 fuel. He said the transition to higher ethanol blends is being done after consultation with industry bodies, including the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) and the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI).
Puri described concerns surrounding E20 fuel as “misrepresentations”, saying, “Automobile manufacturers, as well as the people who service these vehicles, all say there are no difficulties. Why this sudden interest?”
The Union Minister said India is gradually increasing ethanol blending and vehicles compatible with E20 fuel are already in use. “We have been using E15 for the last three and a half years. We have been on E20 since April last year. From April 2025 to April 2026, it has already been a year, and now we are five more months beyond that,” Puri said.
Earlier, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting had also clarified that the E20 fuel was introduced after laboratory, vehicle and field testing by leading technical institutes. It said the use of approved E20 fuel does not automatically void the manufacturer’s warranty and ethanol blending follows the fuel quality standards established under India’s Ethanol Blended Petrol Programme. The ministry said extensive testing by institutes including ARAI, Indian Oil R&D and IIP found no significant engine durability or performance issues with E20 in older vehicles, adding that millions of vehicles are already running on the fuel.
Pawar is the supreme leader of MVA- Raut
Regarding his comments on Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, Raut said he was not angry with Pawar and described him as the “supreme leader” of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Raut said, “We were not angry yesterday and are not angry even today. Pawar Saheb is our supreme leader, he is the leader of Maha Vikas Aghadi. Yesterday, we only talked about our feelings.”
Taking aim at Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Raut said, “Eknath Shinde is the biggest traitor, we believe so.” He said that when Ajit Pawar separated from Sharad Pawar’s party, it had caused similar pain. Raut said, “When Ajit Pawar separated from Pawar Saheb’s party, we felt the same pain. People who betray people should not be given any respect by political leaders like us under any circumstances.”
Raut further said that giving importance to leaders who break parties can send a wrong message to the workers. He said, “If this happens, tomorrow anyone will betray and then leaders like us will go to their homes and have tea with them. Then what will the workers think? I think about the sentiments of the workers. They do not like all this.” (ANI)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianetnews Editorial staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)