EC asks Kejriwal to provide evidence of Haryana govt ‘poisoning’ Delhi water supply by 8 pm tomorrow

While the poll body did not issue a notice to the former Delhi chief minister, it wrote to him saying that the “matter is being examined by the Commission in the light of provisions of MCC [Model Code of Conduct] and relevant provisions of law.” The EC also said it had seen the Delhi Jal Board’s report, which does not mention poisoning in the Yamuna.

“The electors tend to believe whatever is being said in public by their leaders and in that sense the statements, if not true, affect the campaign discourse, thereby vitiating the purity of elections and erode the trust of the voters. In various judicial pronouncements, the Hon’ble Courts have time and again held that purity of elections is an indispensable part of free and fair elections and therefore, it is incumbent upon all stakeholders to maintain purity in elections,” the EC said in its letter to Kejriwal.

The poll body also said that it expected a leader of Kejriwal’s “vast administrative experience” to have the evidence to substantiate the allegation. In its letter to the AAP chief, the EC cited Section 196 of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which pertains to the offence of promoting enmity between different groups, Section 197, which refers to imputations and assertions to national integration, and Section 353, which refers to statements conducing to public mischief.

The EC also noted that the complaint by Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday alleging an increase in the ammonia content in the water released by Haryana to Delhi was being dealt with separately. The commission said that it had asked for a report on the ammonia levels from Haryana government. As per sources, the EC is yet to consider the response of the Haryana government received on Tuesday.

Both Atishi and Mann also met with the poll body Tuesday evening to raise the issue. “We spoke at length about the issue of water in Delhi. We informed them about how the amount of ammonia in the Yamuna River water from Haryana has reached toxic levels. Delhi’s water treatment plants can treat ammonia till 1-2 ppm. But over the past four days, the ammonia concentration has reached 7 ppm, which means it is poisonous water. We informed them if in this manner the toxic water continues to be released by the Haryana government then several water treatment plants will completely shut down and 30% of Delhi will not receive water,” Atishi said after the meeting.

Following this, a delegation of BJP leaders, including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, met the Commission to seek action against Kejriwal. Yadav alleged that the statements were a violation of the Model Code of Conduct. Congress leader and New Delhi candidate Sandeep Dikshit also lodged a complaint against Kejriwal and the Atishi over their remarks.