AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal visited the Election Commission’s office on Friday and submitted his response to a notice over his remark that “poison” had been mixed into the Yamuna River’s water.
Kejriwal, accompanied by Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, went to the Election Commission without a prior appointment. Commission officials said the meeting was accepted as a special case, given the ongoing election campaign in Delhi.
“The Commission agreed to meet with Arvind Kejriwal today as a special case, altering its schedule due to the peak of the election campaign in Delhi to avoid any complaints from stakeholders,” an Election Commission source said. “The Commission gave a detailed hearing to Kejriwal to substantiate his statements about the Yamuna poisoning and mass genocide.”
Following the meeting, AAP MP Sanjay Singh told reporters that Kejriwal provided a thorough explanation of his claim that the BJP had orchestrated a conspiracy to send contaminated water to Delhi. “The Election Commission has said it will investigate the matter,” Singh said.
Before heading to the Election Commission, Kejriwal told reporters he believed the language of the second notice suggested the poll body had already decided on a course of action. He accused the commission of targeting the AAP for speaking out on the issue, alleging that the water contamination was part of a political scheme to harm the party’s image during the election.
Kejriwal also praised the people of Delhi, claiming their efforts had led to a reduction in ammonia levels in the Yamuna River, from 7 parts per million on January 26-27 to 2.1 parts per million.
Earlier in the week, Kejriwal accused the Election Commission and its chief election commissioner of politicizing his statement. He had alleged that the BJP government had mixed high levels of ammonia into the water to create an artificial crisis in the city.
In response, the Election Commission issued two notices to Kejriwal, requesting information on the engineers, locations, and methods used by the Delhi Jal Board to identify the alleged “poison” in the water. Kejriwal was given a deadline of Friday at 11 a.m. to provide the requested details, warning that failure to do so would leave the Commission free to take further action.