Copyright thehindu
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to take part in Chhath Puja at Vasudev Ghat in north Delhi on Tuesday, the Opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) engaged in a war of words on Sunday over the condition of the Yamuna river and preparations for the festival. AAP Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj accused the BJP 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”. “Near Delhi ISBT, the BJP has built an artificial river filled with filtered water from the Wazirabad water treatment plant’s pipeline that supplies drinking water to Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take a dip in that filtered Yamuna water to fool the people of Delhi, Bihar, and Purvanchal,” he alleged. Mr. Bharadwaj claimed that while the Prime Minister would use this “artificial” Yamuna, Purvanchali devotees would have to perform rituals in the main river “full of filth and excreta”. “The BJP does not care if these people fall ill or die; their only concern is propaganda,” Mr. Bharadwaj said at a press conference. ‘Shameful model’ Hitting back, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva accused AAP of “political frustration” and said Mr. Bharadwaj was objecting to the cleaning of Vasudev Ghat and to the presence of clean water there. “The people of Delhi have witnessed the shameful model of AAP’s politics,” he said, asserting that this is the first time that an Opposition party has protested against efforts to ensure cleanliness and sanitation at a religious site. ‘Creating a hue and cry’ Mr. Sachdeva said that from 2018 to 2024, AAP had banned Chhath Puja festival on Yamuna banks. “Now, when Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s government has completed basic cleaning of the Yamuna and opened natural ghats for devotees, they are creating a hue and cry,” he said. A pool of water separate from the main river has been created by the government at Vasudev Ghat for the festival. Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra said around 1,300 ghats are being set up across Delhi for Chhath celebrations. Water Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh inspected several ghats, instructing officials to ensure that devotees face no inconvenience. ‘Sacred union of faith’ “Chhath is not merely a ritual. It is a sacred union of faith, discipline, and nature,” Mr. Singh said. “Under the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, the Delhi government is committed to ensuring every devotee gets a clean, safe, and well-managed environment,” he said. The four-day Chhath festival, dedicated to the Sun god, is celebrated predominantly by Purvanchalis – people from eastern U.P., Bihar, and parts of Jharkhand. The Purvanchalis make up over 30% of Delhi’s electorate. AAP and the BJP had sought to woo the community in the run-up to the Assembly election in February.
