Kejriwal turns the table on EC in response to Yamuna claims

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Kejriwal turns the table on EC in response to Yamuna claims

Thursday, 30 January 2025 | Rajesh Kumar | New Delhi

Kejriwal turns the table on EC in response to Yamuna claims

In response to the Election Commission (EC)’s notice over his allegations that the Haryana government was mixing poison in the Yamuna river, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday clarified that Yamuna water remark was in the context of public-health crisis and raw water received from the state recently has been “highly contaminated and extremely poisonous” for human health.

Kejriwal sparked a controversy earlier this week by saying that BJP-ruled Haryana was ‘mixing poison’ in Delhi water supplied through Yamuna. Both the BJP and the Congress had complained to the EC against Kejriwal for levelling allegations of poisoning of Yamuna river. Acting on their complaint, the poll body had asked him to submit reply by 8 pm on Wednesday

While urging to close the matter, the AAP leader also requested the commission to intervene and pass appropriate directions to the state of Haryana so that clean water is made available to the people of Delhi.

“However, the undersigned herein beseech and most humbly request your good offices to intervene on the major issue of availability of safe water and pass appropriate directions to the state of Haryana so that safe quantity of water is made available to the citizens of Delhi,” Kejriwal wrote in a letter to the commission.

In the 14-page reply to the EC, he said there is no violation of any law or any code is committed and his statements on Yamuna water were made to highlight severe toxicity, contamination of raw water received from from the BJP-ruled state.

“The statement made by him regarding the ammonia present in Yamuna River does not violate Section 196 , 197 and 353 of the BNS Act, 2023, and Section 123(4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Additionally, it is alleged that these statements breach the Model Code of Conduct (MCC). Upon a careful examination of the facts, context, and legal provisions, it is respectfully submitted that the statement made by undersigned are fully protected under the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech and expression, and no offence or any violation of Code of Conduct is committed by him,” reads the reply.

The letter further stated, “That even on the face of it, the said statement, would by no stretch of imagination promote disharmony or enmity between religious, racials, language or regional groups or castes or communities. No such statement so as to create disharmony between such groups or segment of public is made. In the present case, the statement in question neither refers to nor imputes anything against the personal character or conduct of any candidate contesting the elections. Instead, it addresses a critical governance issue of public health and environmental safety, substantiated by official administrative records.

“The political and constitutional implications of labeling an environmental and public health crisis as an electoral offence are profound and deeply concerning. If raising genuine public grievances-particularly concerning the basic necessity of clean drinking water-is curtailed on the pretext of election law violations, it would set a dangerous precedent of silencing dissent and obstructing democratic accountability.”

The AAP chief further stated that there is 7ppm ammonia in Yamuna Water and DJB CEO letter admits toxicity is 700% higher than permissible limit. The root cause of Yamuna Water identified by DJB’s letter is indiscriminate discharge of industrial waste by Haryana.

“Haryana’s failure in controlling pollution has resulted in unprecedented public health crisis. Issue of toxic water supply from Haryana has been raised earlier too; DJB has even approached NGT and Supreme Court,” said Kejriwal adding that Delhi Government has no role to play with such high level of toxic water being made available to Delhi by Haryana which is an upper-riparian state. Due to such high level of toxic content in the raw water supplied by Haryana, WTPs are operating below capacity and there is a shortage of treated water in Delhi.

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