The political slugfest over Delhi’s Yamuna river took a dramatic activate Friday when Aam Aadmi Occasion (AAP) leaders reached Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s residence carrying a bottle of water collected from the river, difficult her to drink it if the ruling celebration believed the Yamuna had been cleaned.
A video confirmed AAP’s Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj holding up a clear bottle full of murky, greyish water. “That is water collected from the Yamuna flowing by means of Delhi,” Bharadwaj stated, as he and different AAP leaders headed to Gupta’s house. “We need to provide this water to Rekha Gupta ji. If she says the Yamuna is clear, she ought to drink it.”
The transfer got here a day after Delhi BJP spokesperson Anil Gupta carried out aachman, a ritual sip, of Yamuna water on digicam, claiming the river was match for rituals after months of cleansing underneath the BJP authorities.
Bharadwaj, nevertheless, accused the BJP of spreading “lies and falsehood” forward of Chhath Puja. “Due to BJP’s lies, lakhs of Purvanchal ladies and younger kids will drink Yamuna water considering the CM has cleaned it. But when they drink that water, they’ll fall fatally unwell,” he stated.
He cited a report by the Delhi Air pollution Management Committee (DPCC) to counter BJP’s claims. “As per the report dated 23.10.2025 of Delhi Govt’s DPCC, the water in Yamuna is NOT even appropriate for bathing. This report exhibits Yamuna water may be very polluted and incorporates human waste in alarming amount,” Bharadwaj wrote on X.
The AAP chief alleged that the BJP governments in Delhi and Haryana had diverted water from Uttar Pradesh’s Jap Canal into the Yamuna “to create an phantasm of cleanliness” earlier than the competition. “Haryana’s BJP authorities diverted all water meant for UP farmers from Hathnikund into the Yamuna to make it seem clear for a number of days,” he stated.
Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva dismissed the allegations, crediting Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s administration for what he known as a “historic turnaround” within the Yamuna’s situation. “The dissolved oxygen stage within the Yamuna is now between 4.5 and 5.5, and the pH is 7.5 — near regular. The water has no foul scent. That is the results of the Rekha Gupta authorities’s constant effort,” he stated.
With Chhath Puja, a significant competition for the Purvanchali neighborhood, set to start October 25, the Yamuna’s situation has turn out to be each a non secular and political flashpoint. The difficulty has additionally gained significance forward of the Bihar Meeting elections scheduled for November 6 and 11.
Former AAP MLA Vinay Mishra accused the BJP of “pretending to like” Purvanchalis due to the upcoming polls. “For years, BJP leaders tried to cease Chhath Puja in Delhi, demolished ghats, and insulted individuals from Bihar and jap UP. At this time, they’re pretending to take care of Purvanchalis solely as a result of elections are close to,” he stated.
In response, Sachdeva alleged that the earlier AAP authorities had “carried out loot within the title of Yamuna Maiya and Chhathi Maiya” and that corruption was the explanation it was voted out.
Earlier this week, Chief Minister Gupta introduced the event of 17 mannequin Chhath ghats alongside the Yamuna and withdrawal of previous circumstances filed towards devotees performing rituals on the riverbanks.
Chhath Puja, devoted to the Solar God and Chhathi Maiya, shall be celebrated from October 25 to twenty-eight.
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