Chief Minister Atishi on Monday inspected the Chhath ghat at ITO in central Delhi while slamming the BJP for ‘obstructing preparations’ for the celebrations of the festival in the national Capital and labelled the party ‘anti-Purvanchal’. Meanwhile, the Delhi BJP hit back at the ruling party and said that it is laughable that Atishi is asking officials to not leave work at the last minute a day before the celebrations.

After inspecting the ghats, the senior AAP leader also accused the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), which functions under the Centre, of halting Chhath preparations in a south Delhi locality."The halting of Chhath puja by the BJP's DDA in Chirag Delhi illustrates its anti-Purvanchal mentality," she said.

Emphasising the importance of the festival for the national capital's Purvanchali community, Atishi said the AAP government in Delhi had been celebrating the festival in a grand manner for the past 10 years. "Chhath is of utmost importance to the brothers and sisters of Purvanchal and we have been celebrating it with great pomp and show all over Delhi for the last 10 years."

"Ten years ago, Chhath was celebrated by the government at only 60 locations in Delhi. Today, the Delhi government has prepared more than 1,000 magnificent Chhath ghats where everyone can properly worship Chhathi Maiya," she added. The Delhi government has declared a public holiday on November 7 for Chhath celebrations.

During the inspection, Atishi directed officials, "All Chhath Ghats should be prepared swiftly so that no work is left for the last minute, ensuring that devotees do not face any inconvenience."

Hitting back at the AAP over the preparations for the devotees, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva stated that while Chhath Puja is set to begin on Tuesday, November 5, Atishi’s instructions to the officials are ‘laughable’.

He pointed out the irony of the Chief Minister’s statement on November 4, telling officials not to leave work until the last minute, when the four-day Chhath Puja will actually begin on November 5 afternoon. “This indicates that the Chief Minister may not even be aware of the start date of Chhath Puja,” he said.

“ Today, just a day before the start of Chhath Puja, even if Chief Minister Atishi makes statements, it’s evident to both the Purvanchal community and other residents of Delhi how the negligence of the AAP government has left the ghats along the Yamuna unprepared,” Sachdeva alleged.

He claimed that out of the 1,060 temporary Chhath ghats, work on more than 800 is still incomplete, with even basic arrangements like water and pit-digging unfinished as of this evening. “When the Chief Minister was inspecting today, most ghats still lacked electricity connections,” he said.

The Delhi BJP chief said that the way AAP MLAs, particularly Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj, tried to politically take over the Chhath Puja ghats, while the Yamuna remains as polluted as it was ten days ago from Wazirabad to Kalindi Kunj, has led the public to lose trust in Arvind Kejriwal Party's Delhi government. It has also hurt their sentiments.