‘Artificial Yamuna’: AAP, BJP lock horns ahead of PM Modi's ceremonial Chhath dip in Delhi

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta reviewing Chhath preparations.

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to take part in Chhath Puja at Vasudev Ghat in north Delhi on Tuesday, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are engaging in a war of words over the condition of the Yamuna river and preparations for the festival.

The AAP has accused the BJP-led Delhi government of constructing an “artificial Yamuna” with “filtered water” at Vasudev Ghat, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to partake in the festivities. The BJP dismissed the allegations, calling them “political drama” and claiming that the opposition was objecting to cleanliness efforts at the riverbank.

AAP Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj accused the party of creating a “fake” Yamuna by filling an artificial pool with filtered water at Vasudev Ghat for the Prime Minister’s participation, while “real devotees are left to wade into the polluted river”.

AAP also released a video claiming that, unlike the “fake river of filtered water,” other ghats had polluted water with high faecal coliform levels, posing health risks for devotees. AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal posted on X that “the BJP has made a mockery of the deep religious sentiments attached to Chhath Parv in Delhi,” while Leader of Opposition Atishi termed the situation “outright discrimination.”

Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva countered the allegations, accusing the former AAP government of banning Chhath Puja on the Yamuna banks between 2018 and 2024. “This is the first-ever political drama in which an opposition leader raised objections against the government’s efforts to ensure cleanliness and sanitation,” Sachdeva said, referring to Bhardwaj’s video from the Yamuna banks.

This year, despite the state elections being almost four-and-half years away, the opposition is accusing the government of going overboard in the preparations for the puja. The main opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has accused the BJP of hypocrisy, alleging that its claims of facilitating Chhath Puja was politically motivated rather than genuine.

They have accused the BJP of turning Chhath Puja celebrations in Delhi into an election strategy ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls. This could be stretching it too far as those celebrating Chhath here in Delhi are unlikely to travel to Bihar for voting in the assembly polls there. Not that the BJP is not eyeing the Bihar polls but it has addressed its migrant voters with Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw working overtime to provide adequate number of trains to meet the festive traffic.