Poonia is the Joint Secretary of the Rajasthan unit of the All India Kisan Sabha and has been at the forefront of farmers' agitations in the state.
[citation needed] He has been involved in fights for lower electricity rates, fairer prices for crops, debt relief, investments in irrigation, as well as insurance and pensions for farmers.
In 2018, Poonia led a 58-day fight against the excessive interest charged by State Bank of India to farmers in Chain Bari village in Hanumangarh district.
[citation needed] He won the Bhadra constituency defeating incumbent BJP MLA Sanjeev Kumar by over 23,000 votes.
[3] Poonia finished a distant third with 1.89% of the vole behind the BJP winner, Rahul Kaswan, who won with nearly 60%, and INC's Rafique Mandelia, who got 34.5% of the vote.