Kejriwal, Rahul Gandhi challenge each other to drink Yamuna water
New Delhi: The political battle over Delhi’s water crisis took a dramatic turn as AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi challenged each other to drink Yamuna water. With the Delhi Assembly elections just days away, the issue of clean water has become a major flashpoint, with both leaders using the controversy to attack one another.
Kejriwal first threw the challenge at Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and other opposition leaders, daring them to drink Yamuna water in front of the media. Accusing the BJP-led Haryana government of deliberately contaminating Delhi’s water supply, he claimed that the river’s ammonia levels had reached 7 parts per million (ppm), a level he described as “poisonous.”
“Amit Shah ji, Rajiv Kumar ji, Rahul Gandhi, Sandeep Dikshit ji, if you believe that the water coming from Haryana is clean, then drink it in front of the media. You are sending 7 ppm ammonia water to Delhi and saying Kejriwal is lying?” he said in an interview.
He blamed Haryana for the contamination, questioning, “If Haryana isn’t responsible, then who is? The water flows from Panipat before reaching Delhi.” Kejriwal warned that if such polluted water entered treatment plants, its chlorination could produce deadly chemicals, endangering millions of residents. However, Rahul Gandhi swiftly turned the challenge back on Kejriwal, reminding him of his own promises regarding the Yamuna’s cleanliness. “Kejriwal had once said he would clean the Yamuna and drink its water. Today, I challenge him, go, drink Yamuna water now,” Gandhi said.
He criticised Kejriwal for failing to deliver on his past commitments and used the opportunity to attack him over corruption allegations. “The entire city knows that Kejriwal has committed the biggest liquor scam. People of Delhi have realised that he has not kept his promises,” Gandhi added.
The controversy has sparked heated political debates ahead of the February 5 elections, with the BJP also joining the fray. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini dismissed Kejriwal’s claims and threatened legal action against him, demanding an apology. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi denounced Kejriwal’s remarks, calling them an “insult to the country” and asserting, “I drink Yamuna water myself.”
The escalating war of words underscores clean drinking water as a key election issue. Amidst the political sparring, the real question is whether concrete steps will be taken to ensure safe water for
Delhi’s residents.
