Hardeep Puri Holds Talks with Team Bharat Amid E20 Protests

Hardeep Puri Holds Talks with Team Bharat Amid E20 Protests

Following the Jantar Mantar protests and clashes, the Narendra Modi government appears determined not to repeat the missteps that turned the recent student protests into a movement powerful enough to force Dharmendra Pradhan to step down as the Union education minister. With the Ethanol-Blended Petrol programme now drawing similar backlash, New Delhi is moving early. On Wednesday (July 29), Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Puri held talks with Team Bharat, a group of protesters, at the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The talks come as the government seeks to address the concerns of the protesters, who are demanding a rollback of the E20 programme. Puri's meeting with Team Bharat was followed by the detention of Cyrus Poonawalla, a key figure in the protests, the next day. The government's move to hold talks with the protesters and detain key figures suggests that it is taking the situation seriously and is willing to engage with the protesters to find a solution.