New Delhi, Oct. 22 -- The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has accused the BJP of turning Chhath Puja celebrations in Delhi into an election strategy ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls. Addressing a press conference, Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that BJP's sudden focus on organising Chhath Puja stems from fear of losing Purvanchali votes, as Arvind Kejriwal has set a high standard for governance.
Bharadwaj alleged that the BJP deceived Purvanchalis about cleaning the Yamuna River, pointing out that toxic foam still floats despite chemical sprays. "Three days ago, the BJP sprayed a defoaming agent the AAP had used earlier, which they once called poison. The foam is still visible," he said. He also questioned BJP's conduct, noting that after accusing AAP of taking commissions during Kanwar Yatra tent installations, BJP is now arranging tents and lights itself, potentially repeating the same practice. Senior AAP leaders Sanjeev Jha and Vinay Mishra joined Bharadwaj in criticizing the BJP for neglecting Purvanchalis in Delhi and other states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Gujarat. Jha highlighted that under AAP, around 1,000 ghats across Delhi received proper facilities for Chhath Puja, including tents, lights, ambulances, security, and sanitation, whereas BJP's efforts reduced ghats from 70 constituencies to just 12.
Vinay Mishra pointed out the BJP's historical prejudice against Purvanchalis, citing past discriminatory statements and actions in Delhi and Maharashtra. He urged CM Rekha Gupta to provide model ghats and full arrangements in every constituency, as Kejriwal's government did, to ensure devotees can celebrate without obstacles.
AAP accused the BJP of hypocrisy, alleging that its claims of facilitating Chhath Puja are politically motivated rather than genuine.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.