
NEW DELHI: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took aim at Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) during his first public address in the Delhi Assembly election campaign on Thursday.
Addressing BJP candidates Bajrang Shukla (Kirari), Dushyant Gautam (Karol Bagh), and Ashish Sood (Janakpuri), Yogi criticised the Delhi government’s handling of the Yamuna and the city’s overall infrastructure.
Yogi said, “As Chief Minister, I bathed with my 54-member cabinet at the Sangam in Prayagraj. Can Arvind Kejriwal and his team bathe in the Yamuna? The person who turned Yamuna into a dirty drain should not be forgiven by the people.” He went on to highlight the progress Uttar Pradesh has made in recent years under his leadership.
Referring to the ongoing Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, Yogi said, “Over 10 crore devotees have bathed at Sangam between January 13 and 23. The city now boasts improved infrastructure with better roads, electricity, rail and air connectivity. The UP and central governments jointly invested Rs 7,500 crore for the Maha Kumbh, generating over Rs 2 lakh crore for the state’s economy and creating thousands of jobs.” The CM accused Arvind Kejriwal of being the “biggest criminal” responsible for
Delhi’s decline. He stated, “Except for the MDMC area, the rest of Delhi is suffering from worsening road conditions, sewage issues, and poor sanitation. The roads are riddled with potholes, garbage is rampant, and sewage flows freely on the streets. The tanker mafia exploits the city’s drinking water crisis. The people of Mathura and Vrindavan are also suffering due to Kejriwal’s mismanagement.”
Yogi further criticised the AAP for creating “false narratives” and focusing more on spreading lies than addressing the public’s needs.
“Had they focused on development as much as they do on falsehoods, Delhi would have transformed in the last decade. Instead, they have turned Delhi into a garbage dump,” he added. The CM also accused the AAP of playing a role in instigating unrest in Delhi.