AAP challenges Delhi CM to drink Yamuna water, accuses BJP of misleading Purvanchalis
New Delhi (PTI): 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.
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Ex-PM Devegowda warns opposition of electoral losses if they continue to allege 'vote chori'
New Delhi (PTI): Former Prime Minister H D Devegowda on Monday said the Opposition parties would "suffer" if they continue to raise allegations of "vote chori" and create suspicion in the minds of voters by blaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.
Participating in a discussion on election reforms in the Rajya Sabha, he criticised the Opposition for making a mockery about the Prime Minister "in the streets and on the public platform".
"This (India) is a very big country. A large country. Congress may be in three states. Remember my friends please, by using the words 'vote chori' you are going to suffer in the coming days. You are not going to win the battle," Devegowda said, referring to the Opposition members.
He asked what the Opposition is going to earn by "blaming Narendra Modi's leadership and creating a suspicion in the mind of the voters" through the claims of "vote chori".
"What has happened to their minds? Let them rectify," Devegowda said.
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The former prime minister said that during his over seven decades of public life, he has never raised such issues of vote theft despite facing defeat in elections.
He also cited a letter written by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru regarding inclusion of "18,000 votes" (voters) in Kerala.
"Why I am telling this (because) during the Nehru period also, there were certain lapses in the electoral system," said Devegowda, who was the prime minister between June 1, 1996 and April 21, 1997.
He said that the Congress party faced defeat in the recent Bihar elections despite raising the issues of mistakes in the electoral rolls.
"What happened after that even after so much review (of voters list). Think (for) yourself! You got six MLAs," the senior Janata Dal (Secular) leader said.
Devegowda questioned the Opposition as to why they want to make allegations against the prime minister on the issue of the voters list?
"Election Commission is there. Supreme Court is there. The Election Commission has given direction to all the state units to rectify all these things," he said.
Devegowda said people of the country have full confidence in Narendra Modi's government and it will come back to power after the next Lok Sabha elections as well.
K R Suresh Reddy, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party's Rajya Sabha member from Telangana, said that electoral reforms are the backbone for a healthy democracy.
He said a large and diverse nation like Indi needs clean electoral rolls.
Asserting that strict re-verification should not become a mechanism for exclusion, Reddy said no eligible voter should lose their right to vote simply because accessing paperwork is difficult.
He said while the concern definitely is on the voters' exclusion, "we should also be equally concerned about the percentage of voting."
"What is happening in voting today? Once the election ends, the drama begins. The biggest challenge that the Indian democracy has been facing in spite of two major Constitutional amendments has been the anti-defection. Anti-defection is the name of the game today, especially in smaller states, especially where the legislatures are small in number," Reddy said.
The senior BRS leader suggested creation of a parliamentary committee "which would constantly look into the defection" and "ways and means to cutting that".
AIADMK's M Thambidurai raised the issues related to election campaigning.
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"Election campaigns are one of the important election processes. In that, political parties must be given the proper chance to campaign," he said and cited problems faced by his party in Tamil Nadu in this regard.
Thambidurai said political parties were facing hardships in Tamil Nadu to conduct public meetings and to express their views to the public.
YSRCP's Yerram Venkata Subba Reddy stressed on bringing electoral reforms at both the state and national levels.
He also suggested replacing Electronic Voting Machines with paper ballots in all future elections.
"EVM may be efficient but can't be trusted. Paper ballot may not be efficient but can be trusted. You need trust in democracy," Reddy added.
