The AAP has lashed out at the BJP for constructing an 'artificial Yamuna' of filtered water at Vasudev Ghat in Delhi.
The 'fake ghat' was allegedly constructed for PM Modi to bathe in on the last day of Chhath Puja as a publicity move.
AAP has raised allegations of special treatment for Modi, while true devotees are tricked and put at risk so that the BJP can appease Purvanchalis before the upcoming Bihar polls
Another political spat has broken out between the AAP and the incumbent BJP in Delhi during the runup to the final day of Chhath Puja.
On Sunday, 26 October 2025, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj accused the BJP government of creating a ‘fake ghat’ by the Yamuna specifically for PM Modi. The ghat was filled with filtered water “so that the Prime Minister can take a dip for cameras,” Bharadwaj said.
The AAP said that the BJP was playing for votes ahead of the upcoming Bihar elections. The BJP countered the allegations, asserting that the AAP was “opposing the cleaning of the Yamuna” out of political frustration.
Bharadwaj, Delhi’s former Water Minister, went live on ‘X’ on the third day of Chhath Puja where he revealed that the BJP “built a fake Yamuna” at Vasudev Ghat near ISBT. He alleged that the ghat was filled with water from the Wazirabad Treatment Plant, which provided Delhi’s drinking water supply.
He declared that the move was a publicity stunt undertaken with the upcoming Bihar polls in mind. He argued that other ghats on the Yamuna remained severely polluted, posing severe health risk to devotees.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi always takes care of his health,” Bharadwaj said in a press conference, “That is why they have created this fake river of filtered water for him, while the ghats for poor Purvanchali people are left on the real Yamuna full of filth and excreta. Even if Purvanchalis die, the BJP’s propaganda must go on.”
He cited a recent report by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) which stated that high faecal coliform levels in the Yamuna made the water unfit for bathing. He also criticised the BJP for using a defoaming chemical which the party itself had called ‘toxic’ years earlier. Earlier, on 24 October 2025, he had shown up at Delhi CM Rekha Gupta’s office with a bottle of water from the Yamuna and challenged her to drink it on camera.
Bharadwaj accused the BJP of “risking people’s health and faith for Bihar votes,” while “adopting new tricks to hide their lie.” He went on to demand an open debate on the issue. Senior AAP leaders also joined the fray on social media.
In response to Bharadwaj’s allegations, Delhi BJP Chief Virendra Sachdeva hit out at the AAP for politicising the issue of tackling pollution, pointing to the party’s past failures on the issue.
“This is the first-ever political drama in which an opposition leader raised objections against the government’s efforts to ensure cleanliness and sanitation,” he said. "Every political party experiences victories and defeats, but the mindset should remain balanced. The Aam Aadmi Party's defeat in Delhi has become a source of deep frustration," he added.
Sachdeva asked why the AAP had earlier banned Chhath Puja in Delhi, pointing out that the BJP has “completed basic cleaning of the river and made natural ghats available for devotees.” He went on the highlight the recent DPCC report, mentioning that the AAP government had failed to make public earlier data. The report showed higher oxygen, more balanced Ph, and lower faecal coliform levels in the Yamuna compared to previous years – the biggest improvement since 2013.
Earlier, on the second day of Chhath Puja, CM Rekha Gupta emphasised her government’s dedication to the festival’s celebration. She said that this year marked the first time celebrations for the festival were being organised on such a large scale in the UT. She said that her government was committed to marking every celebration “with public participation and traditional dignity.”
On Saturday, 25 October 2025, Parvesh Sahib Singh, Water Minister of Delhi, addressed a press conference on the efforts and results of the BJP government’s pollution control initiatives. “While the previous government spent 10 years making announcements, we have delivered visible outcomes within seven months. We promised to clean the Yamuna within three years,” he said.
Despite an improvement in pollution indicators, according to the recent DPCC report, the Yamuna maintains harmful levels of contamination.
“There has been 90% reduction in faecal coliform levels in the Yamuna compared with 2024,” Parvesh Sahib Singh said, adding that some “sampling points are now within or very close to the permissible limit of 2,500 MPN/100 ml – a milestone never achieved before in such a short time.”
While there has been an improvement in pollution indicators across ghats in Delhi, the only ghat where water is considered safe for bathing is Palla, where the Yamuna first flows into Delhi. Other sampling points continued to display high levels of ammonia and organic pollution.
Saurabh Bharadwaj pointed out that water from irrigations channels to Haryana and UP was diverted to the Yamuna before sampling to doctor figures. The season has also seen unprecedented rains across India’s northern belt, flooding the Yamuna several times over the past few months and washing away pollutants.
Delhi’s Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa pointed out that water dumping from Wazirabad and the seasonal rains will provide short-term relief for Chhath Puja, but long-term solutions will be needed to maintain such progress.
Chhath Puja is an important festival for Purvanchali people hailing from Eastern UP and Bihar, who make up around 30% of Delhi’s population. As such, it provides an important political platform for parties to campaign on. At the same time, with the 2025 Bihar Elections forthcoming, the platform is doubly important this year as parties try to win over the Bihari population in Delhi. [Rh]