‘Will Go On Indefinite Fast If Water Crisis Not Resolved’: Atishi Writes to PM Modi

New Delhi: Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, June 19, urging to resolve the water crisis. She said that she will observe an indefinite fast from June 21 if the situation is not resolved. Atishi said they have written multiple letters to the Haryana government to resolve the issue. 

Amid the ongoing heatwave, the national capital is reeling under acute water crisis. Every morning people can be seen standing in queues, holding onto cans and buckets to fill water from the tankers visiting their area. The visuals are common in Vasant Vihar, Geeta Colony and Okhla among other residential so cities of the capital city.

"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..." said Atishi while addressing a press conference on Wednesday. 

Delhi's Aam Aadmi Party government has blamed the neighbouring states like Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for water crisis in the national capital. Haryana has conveyed its incapacity to provide additional water supplies to Delhi after the AAP government requested it to provide water on “humanitarian grounds” amidst the current water crisis. The Upper Yamuna River Board had advised Delhi and Haryana to hold a bilateral meeting and consider whether Haryana could give extra water to Delhi. 

BJP Blames AAP 

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva alleged that the "dirty politics" of AAP is responsible for the water crisis in the city. The BJP's Delhi unit held a demonstration against AAP government on Wednesday, calling for Kejriwal's resignation. 

Sachdeva said that water theft and leaking pipeline system, which should have been fixed over the past 10 years, remain unresolved while Atishi continues to blame Haryana and the BJP to hide her shortcomings.