New Delhi: The escalating feud surrounding Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal’s accusations regarding Yamuna pollution has intensified dramatically after Delhi Chief Minister Atishi sent a fresh letter to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar. Atishi backed her party chief’s statement alleging that Haryana’s actions are a calculated move to disrupt water supply and sway the upcoming elections in Delhi.
“These toxic levels of Ammonia in water coming from Haryana have rendered Delhi’s water treatment plants almost incapable of treating the water effectively, resulting in curtailment of water supply by 15 to 20% i.e. for approximately 34 lakh people of Delhi,” she wrote in her letter to CEC.
“High ammonia levels can trigger public health crises, leading to serious conditions like kidney damage and respiratory issues,” she warned.
Earlier, Kejriwal accused the Haryana government of orchestrating this crisis to shift blame onto AAP, suggesting that such tactics could lead to fatalities among Delhi’s populace. In response, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini threatened legal action against Kejriwal for what he termed “blatantly false” statements, demanding an apology or facing a defamation suit. Saini dismissed Kejriwal’s claims as mere political posturing, asserting that the real issue lies within Delhi’s water distribution system, which he accused Kejriwal of mismanaging over the past decade.
“For these blatantly false and disgusting statements, Kejriwal should immediately apologise to the people of Haryana and Delhi for this statement, otherwise, we will file a defamation suit against him,” Saini told news agency ANI.
The row started on Monday when Kejriwal claimed that the BJP-led Haryana government has been deliberately contaminating the Yamuna water supplied to Delhi, endangering the health of millions in the capital.
Saini remarked that Kejriwal had become a liability for Delhi, while also inviting him to collaborate on verifying the water quality entering the city from Sonipat. “It is his habit and thinking to allege and then run away. I said that you (Arvind Kejriwal) send your chief secretary and I will ask my chief secretary to check the quality of water at Sonipat from where it is entering Delhi. He talks about Ammonia. He claims scarcity of water – but there is no scarcity; there is an issue in the distribution system. He cannot manage the distribution of water in 10 years – even though he promised it from the stage, still people are getting polluted water… He should work instead of making allegations. The people of Delhi have made up their minds and they will teach him a lesson,” Saini had said.
Haryana Minister Anil Vij echoed these sentiments, labeling Kejriwal as a “factory of lies” and challenging journalists to investigate the water quality themselves.
“They will see the difference.Its not our job to clean the river in Delhi, it was Arvind Kejriwal’s job, which he could not do,” Vij said.
Amidst these accusations, Shilpa Shinde, CEO of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), publicly contradicted Kejriwal’s statements, branding them as “factually incorrect.” However, this led to further controversy when Delhi CM Atishi alleged that Shinde’s letter was coerced by Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena under pressure from the BJP.
“When AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal and I exposed the BJP’s conspiracy regarding poisonous water, BJP through LG put pressure on the officials of Delhi government and made CEO Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to write a letter and release it,” Atishi said.
