'Water terrorism': AAP, BJP spar over Yamuna water as political slugfest continues

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Tuesday (January 28) accused Haryana of unleashing “water terrorism” on the capital, triggering a volley of strident denials and counter accusations by the government and the BJP leaders in Haryana.

The ruling party leaders in Haryana turned viciously against AAP leader and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and accused him of both incompetence and spreading lies.

"Ammonia levels continue to be six times above normal in Yamuna waters, at the point it is entering Delhi from Haryana,” Atishi stated in a letter to the Election Commission while seeking its intervention.

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Atishi’s offensive

“Such levels are extremely toxic for the human body. This water cannot be treated and supplied to the people of Delhi. Otherwise, their lives will be at risk,” she said.

Atishi said the water treatment plants of the Delhi Jal Board can treat ammonia up to 1 ppm level but ammonia levels in the water coming from Haryana to Delhi were 700 per cent above the treatable limit.

This has curtailed the water supply in the city by 15-20 per cent, she said, warning that high levels of ammonia in drinking water can lead to a public health crisis and cause kidney damage.

“This is not an act of negligence; it is an act of water terrorism to deliberately impact the conduct of free and fair elections in Delhi,” she said.

Saini targets Kejriwal

On the other hand, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has rubbished Delhi AAP's claim that the ruling BJP in the state is “intentionally” draining industrial waste into the Yamuna that supplies water to the national capital. He also hit out at Kejriwal, saying it has become his habit to level baseless allegations and blame others.

“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 ANI. “It is his habit and thinking to allege and then run away. I said you (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 said.

A statement issued by the Haryana government late on Monday night quoted Saini as saying, “People of Haryana consider Yamuna a holy river and worship it. Why would they mix poison in the river?” The chief minister also said Kejriwal has “lost his mental balance” as AAP is staring at imminent defeat in the upcoming Assembly polls in Delhi.

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The Haryana unit of BJP also launched a scathing attack against Kejriwal for his “poison in Yamuna” claims. “Kejriwal is a classic example of how low someone can stoop to achieve their petty and wicked political interests,” it said in a post on X.

Kejriwal’s charges

Atishi’s letter came a day after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that Haryana’s BJP government had “poisoned” the Yamuna water supplied to Delhi, leading to potential harm to the city residents.

“BJP people in Haryana are mixing poison in the water and sending it to Delhi. If people in Delhi drink this water, many will die. Can anything be more disgusting than this? The poison that is being mixed in the water cannot even be cleaned in water treatment plants. For the safety of the people of Delhi, the water supply has to be stopped in many areas,” Kejriwal said in a post on X.