Arvind Kejriwal’s Water 'Poisoning' Claim Sparks Political Storm, Haryana Govt Moves To Register FIR

The Haryana government has reportedly decided to register a case against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal for alleging that the state's BJP government was “poisoning” Delhi’s water supply.

“Kejriwal’s statement has spread panic in Delhi and Haryana. We have decided to lodge an FIR against him and a process has already been initiated for the same," Haryana minister Vipul Goel was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Saini earlier demanded that Arvind Kejriwal apologise to the people of Haryana and Delhi, warning of a defamation lawsuit if he failed to do so.

Saini accused Kejriwal of making the statement out of desperation over a possible electoral defeat. “

“Kejriwal has lost his mental balance seeing his possible defeat in the elections. He should seek an apology from the public of Delhi and Haryana immediately or we will file a defamation suit against him. Kejriwal has insulted the land where he was born," Saini said.

Questioning Kejriwal’s claim, Saini said, “Kejriwal said ‘the engineers of Delhi Jal Board stopped the (Yamuna) water from coming to Delhi because they came to know that there is a poison in the water’. How the engineers reached the conclusion that it has poison".

"Kejriwal should tell ‘which and how much poison was put into it’ and ‘if the water was poisonous, how many fishes died’. The people of Haryana consider Yamuna a holy river and worship it. Why would they mix poison in its water," he added.

Responding to complaints from BJP and Congress leaders, the Election Commission (EC) on Tuesday asked Kejriwal to give proof backing his accusation that Haryana’s government was “poisoning” Delhi’s water ahead of the 5 February elections.

Although the EC did not issue a formal notice, it sent a letter to Kejriwal stating that the matter was under review in accordance with the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) and relevant legal provisions.

He was asked to submit a “factual and legal matrix along with evidentiary support” for his claim by 8 pm on Wednesday.

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