Haryana BJP MPs demand Kejriwal's arrest over 'poisoning Yamuna' claim

New Delhi: BJP MPs from Haryana on Tuesday demanded the arrest of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal over his claim that the state was releasing "poison" in the Yamuna River that supplies water to Delhi.

Addressing a press conference, all 10 Haryana MPs said it was a clear case of "criminal conspiracy" by Kejriwal who was trying to create panic among the residents of Delhi.

The BJP MPs challenged the Aam Aadmi Party government to test the quality of water released from Haryana before it is supplied to households in Delhi.

BJP MP Dharambir Singh said, "For some time now, former Delhi CM Kejriwal has been making statements that are hurting the people of Haryana. They are accusing us of poisoning the water released from our state.

"We provide more than 10,000 cusecs of water to Delhi, even though we also face water scarcity. But we still send water to Delhi because it is the national capital," he said.

BJP MP Kiran Choudhary said the Yamuna water gets contaminated after entering Delhi and slammed the AAP chief for making "false allegations".

"I am shocked that Kejriwal has said we are doing water terrorism. It's unfortunate that a chief minister is making such statements. Anyone can go and check the quality of the water coming from Haryana, but after Wazirabad, garbage and pollutants are mixed into the water by them. We even see white frothing on the Yamuna water.

"There are 37 treatment plants, but only 17 of them are operational. Whose responsibility is this?" she said.

Former Chairperson of the National Commission for Women and BJP MP Rekha Sharma accused Kejriwal of spreading lies ahead of the February 5 Delhi Assembly elections.

"Whenever elections approach, Kejriwal starts spreading lies. He has realised that his government won’t be formed, so he has started making allegations. He has stooped so low that he is now indulging in 'nautanki' (drama).

"Ten years ago, the AAP promised to clean the Yamuna but even today they are saying the same thing. What have they done for the public? They just blame the BJP," she said.

She claimed that the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has said that after Wazirabad, untreated waste is mixed in the water, leading to toxic water entering Delhi. The DJB comes under the AAP government.

"They should apologise to both the people of Delhi and the residents of Haryana. The Haryana government is considering taking legal action against them for such baseless allegations," she said.

BJP MP Ramchandra Jangra said Kejriwal was attacking the federal system by making such serious allegations about a state government. He called it a criminal conspiracy and demanded Kejriwal be arrested.

"Kejriwal has made a serious accusation and compared Haryana's water supply to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, claiming that the Haryana government is attempting to carry out a massacre of Delhi's people. This is an attack on the federal system of the country. He is trying to create panic among people as political gains," the BJP MP said.

"If the water sent from Haryana is free from toxins up to the permissible limits, then Kejriwal should be arrested for levelling fake allegations and for hatching a conspiracy," he said.

Earlier in the day, Kejriwal said he was not afraid of legal action and asserted that he would not let people die in Delhi because of the "dirty, poisonous water".

Kejriwal claimed in a press conference that the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) CEO, in a letter on Monday, confirmed that a "poison" called ammonia had been mixed with the water supplied from the neighbouring state.

Haryana Chief Minister Naib Singh Saini has refuted Kejriwal's charge and threatened to file a defamation suit against him if he did not apologise Hitting back at Saini, Kejriwal said he should not do politics over the issue. "It's sinful, you will face the curse of the people," Kejriwal said referring to Saini.

"They are threatening to filea case against me. I was sent to jail by them, will they now hang me," he stated.