In the sweltering heart of Delhi, a poignant moment of resolve unfolded. Delhi Water Minister Atishi, driven by the cries of a thirsty populace, embarked on an indefinite ‘Pani Satyagraha’—a hunger strike demanding the restoration of Delhiites’ water rights from the BJP’s Haryana government. Before starting the ‘satyagraha’, she went to CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal’s house at 10.45 am and met his family. From there, she went to Rajghat at 11 am and offered flowers at the ‘Samadhi’ of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi and took his blessings. This gesture of homage marked a deep-rooted commitment to her cause. After this, she reached the protest site ‘Bhogal’ in Jangpura and started an indefinite ‘Pani Satyagraha’ from here at 12 noon. During this, CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Smt. Sunita Kejriwal, MP Sanjay Singh, Cabinet Ministers Saurabh Bharadwaj and Imran Hussain, MLA Durgesh Pathak, Rakhi Birla and many MLAs and councilors were present with her.
In this powerful act of defiance, Atishi’s ‘Pani Satyagraha’ stands as a testament to the enduring spirit of Delhi’s citizens, echoing a plea for justice and a right as fundamental as water.
During this, Water Minister Atishi said that Delhi is dependent on neighboring states for water. Delhi should get 1,005 MGD water daily. Out of this, Haryana gave 613 MGD water, but for the last two weeks, Haryana has given only 513 MGD water. “Being the Water Minister of Delhi, I made every possible effort to get Delhi’s rightful share of water, but the BJP government of Haryana did not give it. In this regard, I also wrote a letter to the Prime Minister and requested him to get Delhi’s rightful share of water from the Haryana government. But instead of getting relief, for the last two days, the Haryana government has stopped 120 MGD of Delhi’s rightful share of water. That is why I had to sit on an indefinite hunger strike,” she added.
The Delhi Water Minister continued, stating, “The heat that Delhi has experienced this year may not have been as much in the last 100 years. A few days ago, Delhi’s temperature had reached above 50 degrees Celsius. Even at 10 o’clock in the night, the temperature remains above 40 degrees Celsius. In such extreme heat, everyone’s need for water increases. At a time when Delhiites need more water, there is a shortage of water in Delhi.”
She mentioned that Delhi does not have its source of water. All the water in Delhi comes from neighboring states. Delhi gets 1,005 MGD of water. This water goes to Delhi’s water treatment plants and from there, it reaches people’s homes through pipelines. Out of this 1,005 MGD water, 613 MGD water comes from Haryana. But for the last 2 weeks, Haryana has been continuously giving less water to Delhi. The Haryana government is giving 500-513 MGD water to Delhi instead of 613 MGD. It is giving 100 MGD less water daily.
“One million gallons of water supplies water to 28,500 people. That means when the Haryana government stops 100 MGD of water for Delhiites, water supply to more than 28 lakh people of Delhi is stopped. This is the reason why there is a water crisis in different parts of Delhi today. Delhiites are waiting for water for hours. They are yearning for every drop of water. Women stand in this scorching heat and wait for tankers to fill at least one bucket of water for their homes,” Ms. Atishi stated.
Ms. Atishi said that being the water minister, I made every possible effort to demand water from the Haryana government as per Delhi’s rights. I wrote a letter to the Chief Minister of Haryana to give us water, but the Haryana government did not agree. I told the Himachal Pradesh government that if they have extra water, they should give it to Delhi. The Himachal Pradesh government also agreed to give water, but the water of Himachal Pradesh also had to come through Haryana and the Haryana government refused to do that too. I appealed to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court also agreed that there is a huge water crisis in Delhi, but even after that, the Haryana government did not give water.
“All the senior officials of the Delhi government went to Chandigarh to meet the Haryana officials and ask for water, but even then the Haryana government did not agree. I also wrote a letter to the Prime Minister two days ago that 28 lakh Delhiites are troubled and are craving every drop of water. Therefore, you (PM) only please provide us with water from Haryana. But far from getting water, Haryana has stopped even more water in the last two days. While Haryana had stopped 100 MGD of water, if we look at the figures of Thursday (20th June), it has stopped 120 MGD of water,” The Water Minister shared.
She said that being the water minister, I have tried everything possible, but now there is no way out, so Gandhiji has taught us that when we walk on the path of truth, fight for justice, and struggle against injustice, then many times you are left with no other option except ‘Satyagraha’ (hunger strike).
“Now I cannot see the daily hardships of Delhiites, the pain of the women of Delhi, the troubles of the children of Delhi. In such a situation, after paying tribute to Gandhiji on Friday, I am sitting on an indefinite fast by giving up food in ‘Bhogal’, Jangpura. Till the people of Delhi do not get the water as per their right, till the thirst of these 28 lakh people of Delhi is not quenched, till the people of Delhi do not get justice, this indefinite fast will continue,” the Delhi Minister stated.
“Today I am taking a pledge that till the people of Delhi do not get water, this ‘Pani Satyagraha’ (hunger strike for water) will continue and I will end my fast only when every Delhiite gets the water as per his right. This hunger strike cannot give me more pain than the suffering that the people of Delhi are going through and the suffering that I am seeing. I seek the blessings of the people of Delhi and hope that the Haryana government will provide water to the people of Delhi as per their rights,” Minister Atishi concluded.
BJP’s Haryana government is not giving water to 28 lakh people of Delhi
Delhi’s total water supply is 1,005 million gallons per day (MGD). Out of this, Delhi should get 613 MGD of water from Haryana, but Haryana is giving only 513 MGD of water. Delhi is getting 100 MGD less water from Haryana every day. Due to this, there is a water crisis and more than 28 lakh people are not getting their share of water. Due to this, Delhiites are extremely distressed and there is a crisis for water.
It’s noteworthy that Delhi’s Water Minister Atishi talked to the BJP’s central and Haryana governments as well as the Himachal government for water. Himachal is ready to give water, but that water has to come to Delhi through Haryana. The Haryana government refused to do this. After this, the Delhi government knocked on the Supreme Court’s door and the Apex Court acknowledged Delhi’s Water Crisis. After this, Delhi government officials talked to the Haryana government, the Water Minister wrote a letter to the Prime Minister, but even after all this, Haryana did not give water to Delhi.
Water Minister Atishi met CM Arvind Kejriwal’s family
Before starting the ‘Satyagraha’, Water Minister Atishi reached CM Shri Arvind Kejriwal’s residence at around 10.45 am and met his family. Here she met Shri Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Smt. Sunita Kejriwal and took her blessings. Smt. Sunita Kejriwal praised Ms. Atishi’s dedication towards the people of Delhi and wished her all the best. During this, senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh, Cabinet Ministers Saurabh Bharadwaj and Imran Hussain, MLA Durgesh Pathak and senior leader Jasmine Shah were also present.
Went to Rajghat and took Gandhiji’s blessings
Leaving the CM residence at around 11 am, Water Minister Atishi along with Smt. Sunita Kejriwal and senior party leaders Sanjay Singh, Saurabh Bharadwaj, Imran Hussain went to Rajghat and paid homage to the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi by offering flowers at his ‘Samadhi’. She took blessings for victory in this battle by circumambulating Gandhiji’s samadhi.
‘Pani Satyagraha’ started at 12 noon in Bhogal
From Rajghat, the convoy of the Water Minister left for the protest site at Bhogal in Jangpura. Here she offered flowers to Gandhi’s picture and after taking his blessings, sat down for the ‘Pani Satyagraha’ at around 12 noon. During this time, Smt. Sunita Kejriwal, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, MLAs Rakhi Birla, Durgesh Pathak and Jarnail Singh along with many councilors of the party were present on the stage with her.
