AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj
NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday escalated its attack on the BJP government over the Yamuna’s pollution levels ahead of Chhath puja, with the party’s Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj challenging chief minister Rekha Gupta to drink water from the river to prove her claims that it had been cleaned. There was no immediate response available from the Delhi government over the accusation. Addressing a press conference, Bharadwaj said, “Yamuna Ji’s water contains sewage, and this has been confirmed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) report under the BJP government. Millions of people from the Purvanchal community will be victims of the lies and deceit of BJP leaders and CM Rekha Gupta.” People from Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand living in Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) are referred to as Purvanchalis. He alleged that the BJP government had obstructed AAP’s plans to clean the Yamuna when it was in power, and accused the ruling party of “spreading a regime of lies” for political gains. “Our government made a plan to clean Yamuna Ji, but the BJP’s LG created all sorts of obstacles. If Rekha Gupta claims the river is clean, she should drink its water and show it,” he said. AAP leader and Burari MLA Sanjeev Jha, who was also present, alleged that the BJP was “playing with the lives of Purvanchalis” for political mileage. “While in power, the BJP is playing with the lives of the Purvanchal community for political benefits. The BJP has always hated Purvanchalis and this time it is playing with their health,” he said. In a post on X, Bharadwaj cited a Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) report dated October 23, claiming the Yamuna’s water was “not even suitable for bathing” and contained “human waste in alarming quantity”. He further alleged that the Haryana government had diverted water from the Eastern Yamuna Canal for a week, which would worsen pollution levels after the diversion stopped. Later in the day, several AAP leaders reached the chief minister’s residence with bottles of Yamuna water, reiterating their challenge for Gupta to drink it. “CM Madam, drink the so-called clean water of Yamuna,” the party said in a post on X. The war of words comes as Chhath puja, a four-day festival dedicated to the Sun God and Chhathi Maiya, begins on Friday. The BJP, which returned to power in Delhi earlier this year after 26 years, has made rejuvenating the Yamuna one of its key promises. The political temperature in the capital has been rising ahead of the festival, with both parties accusing each other of misleading people over the river’s condition and preparations for Chhath celebrations.
