Delhi govt alleges plot to dump dead fish in Yamuna ahead of Chhath Puja

The Delhi government, led by Rekha Gupta, has accused unidentified individuals of disposing dead fish into the Yamuna river in a bid to tarnish its image prior to the Chhath Puja festival. The Irrigation and Flood Control Department submitted a letter to the Station House Officer of Sonia Vihar, requesting police intervention in the alleged act. The department alleged that the dumped dead fish were meant to damage the Delhi government's image.

This incident arises amidst a heated political debate regarding the cleanliness of the Yamuna river. BJP MP Manoj Tiwari recently dipped his feet in the river, asserting that its pollution levels had decreased by half over the past year due to the Delhi government's cleanup efforts. Tiwari also asserted that people would be able to celebrate Chhath Puja in the Yamuna once more.

In response to Tiwari's claims, AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj criticized the BJP, stating that the 26-kilometer stretch of the Yamuna river from Palla to Wazirabad had historically maintained a relatively clean condition. Bharadwaj, in a post on X, noted that during the period when the AAP government was in power, this section of the river was cleaner than ever.

He further highlighted that these BJP claims lacked knowledge about Delhi, as the DPCC reports had previously indicated that the 26km segment from Palla to Wazirabad was consistently cleaner during the AAP government's tenure.