Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Swati Maliwal arrived at the residence of chief minister Atishi on Saturday, holding a bottle of dark water allegedly supplied to residents in Sagarpur and Dwarka. The Rajya Sabha MP voiced her frustration over Delhi’s ongoing water crisis, pouring the bottle of polluted water in front of the CM’s residence as a warning and threatening a larger protest if the issue isn’t resolved soon.
“The people of Sagarpur and Dwarka called me, and the situation there is very bad,” Maliwal told reporters. “I went to a house, and black water was being supplied there. I filled that black water in a bottle and brought it here, to the Chief Minister’s residence.” She added that since 2015, Delhi residents have been promised improvements to the water supply, yet each “next year” has not brought the promised relief. “This black water I’ve brought – they have no shame. Will Delhi drink this?” Maliwal asked.
In a pointed message to Atishi, Maliwal said, “I warned the chief minister – this was just a sample. If, within fifteen days, she does not fix the water supply for all of Delhi, I will bring a whole tanker full of this water.” Maliwal went on to suggest that Atishi “bathe with this water, drink this water, or purify her sins,” expressing disappointment at the condition of Delhi’s water, especially during the festive season. “Chhath Puja is coming. Today was Govardhan Puja, yesterday was Diwali, and this is the condition in Delhi… Who can drink this water and live?”
Maliwal further criticized Atishi, saying, “The Chief Minister is also the Water Minister. Is her job just to have fun by holding ten press conferences every day?”
Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi was sworn in as the eighth chief minister of Delhi on September 21, 2024, following the resignation of AAP’s national convener, Arvind Kejriwal, on September 17.