In a post on X on Saturday, Gandhi said that 11 of the 14 petrol samples tested at an accredited laboratory were found to contain more than 20 per cent ethanol. Questioning the Centre's ethanol-blending programme, he remarked, "E20 turned into 420 - stealing petrol from the public's cars!" He accused both public sector and private oil companies of exceeding the prescribed limit and raised concerns over the transparency of their testing procedures.
According to the test results cited by Gandhi, samples collected from Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) contained 31.2 per cent and 30.5 per cent ethanol, respectively.
The samples were collected from seven districts of Karnataka: Bengaluru, Kolar, Chikkaballapura, Bengaluru Rural, Ramanagara, Mangaluru and Tumakuru.
Gandhi also named Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), Nayara Energy and Shell among the companies whose petrol samples were tested. He claimed that the companies' in-house laboratories had not disclosed the ethanol content found in the samples.
Oil Companies Dispute Karnataka's Test Findings
The allegations have emerged amid an ongoing dispute between the Karnataka government and oil marketing companies over the ethanol content of petrol being sold across the state.
Karnataka Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister Rizwan Arshad had earlier stated that tests conducted by the NABL-accredited and ISO-certified Shriram Research Institute in Bengaluru detected ethanol levels exceeding the permitted 20 per cent limit in several petrol samples.
According to the state government, the samples were initially sent to the in-house laboratories of IOCL and BPCL for testing. However, the reports did not mention the ethanol content. Following this, the government decided to have the samples examined independently.
Oil Companies Reject Allegations of Excessive Ethanol Blending
The three public sector oil companies, IOCL, BPCL and HPCL, have rejected Karnataka's findings that petrol contained ethanol beyond the prescribed limit. They maintained that the allegations were not supported by tests conducted in accordance with the prescribed procedures.
In a joint statement, the companies said that E20 petrol supplied across the country, including Karnataka, complies with the Bureau of Indian Standards' specification IS 17021.
They also questioned the sampling procedure followed during the October 2026 exercise, claiming that their representatives were not involved in collecting the fuel samples. The companies further said they had not received retained samples, details of individual fuel outlets or complete laboratory reports.
Raising concerns over the third-party laboratory certificates cited by the Karnataka government, the oil companies said the documents did not provide technical details about the testing methods used to determine ethanol levels. They maintained that the reported findings could not be independently verified without access to the necessary documentation and corresponding fuel samples.
The companies also rejected estimates suggesting annual mileage losses of Rs 62,000 crore and vehicle repair costs of Rs 39,000 crore. They argued that these figures required proper scientific and technical evidence.
Seeking further verification, the oil marketing companies have asked the Karnataka government to share complete sampling records and provide access to the corresponding fuel samples. They have proposed that the samples be tested independently at an authorised laboratory in the presence of state government representatives.
The dispute has brought the ethanol content of petrol supplied in Karnataka under scrutiny, with Rahul Gandhi's allegations based on independent laboratory findings being contested by oil marketing companies that maintain their fuel meets the prescribed national standards.
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