NEW DELHI: In the high-stakes battle for Purvanchali votes, the Congress has upped the ante with a bold promise -- building a grand Chhath Puja Ghat akin to the iconic Maha Kumbh structures on the Yamuna riverbank.
The new district will be named after celebrated Bihari folk singer Sharda Sinha who passed away in November at AIIMS after a prolonged illness, the party said.
Announcing the plan at a press conference, Bihar Congress President Akhilesh Prasad Singh slammed both the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for allegedly neglecting the contributions of the Purvanchali community to Delhi’s growth.
“Purvanchalis are the backbone of Delhi’s development, yet they are treated as mere vote banks, only to be insulted post-elections,” he said.
Singh accused the AAP government in the city of abandoning the community during the COVID-19 crisis, forcing them to walk home in dire conditions.
He also criticized the AAP for failing to address the Yamuna's pollution, which led to the High Court banning Chhath Puja on its toxic banks.
"The BJP and AAP have deeply hurt the sentiments of Purvanchalis by denying them their religious rights and leaving them in the lurch," he added.
The Congress leader didn’t spare the BJP either, alleging that its President JP Nadda insulted Purvanchalis by likening them to Rohingya and Bangladeshi immigrants.
He also pointed out the neglect of 1,797 unauthorized colonies, primarily inhabited by Purvanchalis, where basic amenities like potable water, sanitation, and roads remain a distant dream.
Meanwhile, the BJP launched a scathing attack on AAP after Arvind Kejriwal’s alleged remark labeling Purvanchalis as 'fake voters.'
Protests erupted outside the former Chief Minister’s residence, with BJP leaders demanding an apology.
In a bid to contain the damage, Kejriwal blamed the BJP-led central government for the lack of development in unauthorized colonies.
“People from Purvanchal come here and reside in slums. Before 2014, living in the slums was a life of hell, with mud and sludge everywhere. The BJP has done nothing in the last 10 years to improve conditions for Purvanchalis living here,” he said.
With Delhi’s poll narrative shifting sharply towards Purvanchali issues, the community has become the epicenter of a fierce political tug-of-war.
The Congress hopes its grand Chhath Ghat promise will strike a chord, while the BJP and AAP scramble to protect their Purvanchali voter base from slipping away.
