The Centre on Tuesday dismissed media reports claiming it had described its 20% Ethanol Blended Petrol (E20) programme as an “ongoing experiment” before the Supreme Court, saying the reports were “completely false” and did not reflect the submissions made during the hearing.In a statement, the Office of the Attorney General for India said reports suggesting the government told the court that the impact of the E20 policy would become clearer next year were incorrect.
The clarification relates to proceedings in a Special Leave Petition filed by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) concerning the allocation of ethanol to dedicated ethanol plants.
According to the government, the Attorney General informed the Supreme Court that similar petitions involving the same legal issues are pending before various High Courts. The Centre said it is filing transfer petitions to bring all such cases before the Supreme Court so they can be heard together, avoiding parallel proceedings and conflicting judgments.The government said this would also help ensure that ethanol supplies to oil marketing companies remain uninterrupted, supporting the nationwide rollout of the 20% ethanol blending programme.Taking note of the submissions, the Supreme Court said the transfer petitions should be filed and directed that the status quo on ethanol allocation for the current 2025-26 ethanol supply year be maintained in the present case.The Centre stressed that at no point did it describe the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme or the E20 blending initiative as an “experiment.”It also urged media organisations to report court proceedings accurately, particularly in matters involving important national policy initiatives.
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