Opposition Accuses Data Manipulation as Delhi Suffers After Diwali, BJP Points to ’25 Years of Inactivity’

Delhi minister and BJP figure Kapil Mishra has claimed that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) officials have “orchestrated” agricultural fires in Punjab to exacerbate pollution in Delhi, suggesting that probing these events could potentially result in the arrest of former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. The pollution crisis following Diwali in the national capital has escalated into a political conflict. The Congress Party and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have likewise charged the BJP government with ineffective enforcement and hiding air-quality information.

The ruling party, in its reply, accused the Opposition of criticizing Hindu festivals after failing to address the issue during their 25 years in power, with BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal claiming that Opposition parties only highlight pollution during Hindu festivals. The verbal conflict arises as a dense layer of smoke envelops Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) following Diwali festivities, diminishing visibility and elevating air pollution to the ‘severe’ level in multiple areas.

The total Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi reached 373 at 11:05 pm on Sunday, as per data from the Central Pollution Control Board shared on the Sameer app. Areas such as Alipur, Bawana, Burari, Chandni Chowk, Mundka, Punjabi Bagh, Rohini, and Vivek Vihar experienced AQI levels exceeding 400. Multiple monitoring stations ceased showing live data as pollution levels increased, reports indicated. The impacted areas comprised RK Puram, Nehru Nagar, Mundka, Sonia Vihar, and Dwarka, according to news agency IANS.

The BJP, however, pointed at the authorities in Punjab as the main culprits.

“Let’s look at the AQI levels. This is from this morning in Malout, Punjab. Then there’s Abohar, where the AQI has reached 1,307. And in Sangrur, the home constituency of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann himself, the AQI is 1,651,” Mishra told NDTV this morning.

“This is the situation regarding fires in Punjab as of this morning. What is happening in Punjab? Who is setting fire to farmers’ fields and then fleeing? Why are these fires being orchestrated? The phone records of Aam Aadmi Party MLAs, their leaders, and the ‘gang’ from the Aam Aadmi Party, who have come from Delhi and are now stationed in Punjab, should be examined. These are the people who have orchestrated these fires,” he alleged.

“If the truth behind these fires in Punjab comes to light, and if Bhagwant Mann conducts an honest investigation for the sake of Punjab’s farmers, then it is quite possible that Kejriwal himself could end up in jail,” Mishra said.

“Is the government suppressing the data? Were the monitors deliberately switched off? Or was the pollution so dangerously high that it exceeded the measuring capacity of the equipment?” Khera posted on X.

“Whatever the reason, the government owes the people of Delhi an explanation,” he said. “The fact that the data has gone missing doesn’t mean the pollution has disappeared too.”

AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj leveled a comparable accusation, sharing a video that he asserted demonstrated the AQI had surpassed 3,000. The measurement was not an authorized AQI reading for the entire city.

“Bharadwaj stated that the government is committing AQI data fraud, cautioning that pollution levels indicated as lower than reality may put residents at risk for heart attacks, asthma attacks, and respiratory failure.” He also criticized the Rekha Gupta administration for its artificial-rain initiative after predictions suggested that Western Disturbances might deliver rain to regions of northern India.

The Delhi government intended to initiate cloud seeding if pollution levels increased following Diwali and Chhath Puja. Two experiments had been carried out in the prior 15 days, one of which was close to Delhi airport. Experts have indicated that artificial rain may decrease pollution temporarily during severe events, but it cannot tackle emissions at their origin.

BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal stated that the Opposition addresses pollution concerns solely during Hindu festivals. He stated that the Congress ruled Delhi for 15 years and the AAP for the subsequent 10 but did not take sufficient action when long-term solutions needed to be put in place. “Over these 25 years, when the greatest efforts should have been made to address pollution, neither the Congress nor the AAP has taken even one step.” “The residents of Delhi are suffering the repercussions today,” he stated.

The Commission for Air Quality Management implemented Stage 3 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) ahead of Diwali as a “preventive” action. The Supreme Court permitted certified green firecrackers during designated hours on November 7 and 8, reinstating the total ban on November 9.eans. Before wasting their time on Kharge ji’s speech and Congress speech, they should spend half the time in tutoring Mr Modi and preparing him for the upcoming debate with Mr Rahul Gandhi, because that’s going to be a spectacle. Are they so coward that they won’t have a debate with Rahul Gandhi? Then let them say that we are cowards and we can’t.”