"Water crisis orchestrated by Kejriwal govt to encourage corruption, tanker mafia": Bansuri Swaraj

New Delhi [India], June 20 : Amid the ongoing water crisis in the national capital, BJP MP from the New Delhi constituency, Bansuri Swaraj, targeted the Kejriwal government and claimed that the crisis has been brought about by the AAP government to encourage corruption.
Speaking to ANI, Swaraj said, "It almost seems that this crisis, which is not a natural crisis, has been orchestrated by the Kejriwal government to encourage their own corruption as well as to encourage the illegal tanker mafia."
She added, "Delhi is in a dire state. The entire city is parched and the Kejriwal government is indulging only in theatrics. Delhi minister Atishi instead of working on the ground and instead of taking any adequate steps is now indulging in mere theatrics and is now threatening Delhiites with anshan (fast)."
She said that the 'anshan' is nothing but an attempt to camouflage the incompetence of the Kejriwal government and their inaction.
Swaraj added, "Even the Supreme Court of India came down heavily on the Kejriwal government, scolding them for the fact that they had not taken any steps to curb the operation of illegal tanker mafia in Delhi. Nor have they done anything to ensure that there is no water wastage."
Stepping up her attacks on the Delhi government, Bansuri Swaraj said that the government has been in power for the past 10 years but has not improved the infrastructure of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB). "It is shocking to see that the Kejriwal government has enjoyed power in Delhi for the last decade. But in the last ten years, they have not spent a dime to do anything to improve or repair the infrastructure of the DJB. The pipelines of the DJB are in an utter desiccating state. The Kejriwal government is responsible for it".
Lambasting the MLAs of the Aam Aadmi Party, she further said, "I want to ask them where are the MLAs of the AAP? There are more than 60 MLAs of the AAP and we do not find them working on the ground. It is appalling to see that for the first time in the democratic history of Bharat, you have an elected government that rather than being in command of the situation and working on the ground, is indulging in the rhetoric of the opposition party. And therefore, the responsibility is now being shouldered by the workers of the BJP."
Asserting that the BJP is helping people amidst the water crisis, Bansuri said, "We are the responsible opposition party, we are on the ground, we are working throughout and ensuring that the water tankers are reaching the public but what is the AAP doing?
The BJP MP also raised questions regarding the planning of the Delhi government to handle the situation amidst the heatwave. She said, "If the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had predicted in March itself that Delhi was going to suffer a heatwave, why did she (Atishi) not take any repair work on the DJB infrastructure? Why was no action plan made? ... Why was there no strategy made to tackle the water crisis?"
Meanwhile, amid a political tug-of-war between the BJP and the AAP over the water crisis, Atishi said on Wednesday that if Delhi does not get its "rightful" share of water by June 21, she will be forced to do a 'Satyagraha'.
"Today, I have written a letter to the Prime Minister saying that 28 lakh people in Delhi are not getting water. I have requested that he should help provide water as soon as possible... If the people of Delhi do not get their rightful share of water by the 21st, then I will be forced to do a Satyagraha," Atishi said in a press conference.
"Due to the scorching heat, the water problem in Delhi has also increased. Today, Delhiites need more water. The total supply of water in Delhi is 1050 MGD, out of which 613 MGD water comes from Haryana but Haryana is not giving the full share of water to Delhi," she alleged further.
The Delhi Minister also claimed that due to the shortage of water released from the Haryana side, 28 lakh people are getting less water in Delhi.
"Haryana gave only 513 MGD of water to Delhi yesterday. Due to this, Delhi is short of 100 MGD of water today. Due to this, about 28 lakh people are getting less water. The people of Delhi are troubled. We have made all efforts to solve this problem. We have spoken to the Chief Minister of Haryana, but the BJP government of Haryana is not giving Delhi its share of water," Atishi said.