Ahead Of Polls, Arvind Kejriwal Says He "Could Not Fulfil" These 3 Promises

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday admitted that he could not fulfil his three promises.

Addressing a gathering in Laxmi Bai Nagar ahead of the February 5 assembly polls in Delhi, Mr Kejriwal reminded people of his promises and said the AAP government is working towards their completion.

"I had made three promises. I am truthful to my promises. Either I fulfil them or I remind that I promised but couldn't do it. I could not fulfil three promises - first - cleaning the Yamuna river, second - providing clean drinking water 24 hours a day and third - making Delhi's roads of European standards," he said.

Mr Kejriwal, who in 2023 said the Yamuna would be cleaned before the 2025 Delhi assembly elections and that he would take a dip into the river, further said the work of cleaning the river will be completed in two to three years.

#WATCH | Delhi: AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal says, "I could not fulfill 3 promises - first cleaning the Yamuna, second providing clean drinking water and third making Delhi's roads of European standard. A lot of work has been done for these... all these 3 works will be… pic.twitter.com/6tcj3nKfPs

— ANI (@ANI) January 18, 2025

"About 24-hour drinking water supply, this has been started in a colony of Rajendra Nagar. I inaugurated it about 10 days ago. Now we will do it for all areas of Delhi," the AAP chief said.

All these three promises will be fulfilled in the next five years, he said.

Congress Leader Slams Arvind Kejriwal

Sandeep Dikshit, the son of Delhi's former chief minister Sheila Dikshit and Congress candidate to take on Arvind Kejriwal, slammed the AAP government and said it is solely responsible for the capital's toxic air and polluted Yamuna.

Addressing a press conference at the party office on Saturday, Mr Dikshit said under the earlier Congress government Delhi, air and the Yamuna had witnessed a pollution reduction.

Mr Dikshit -- who is contesting from the New Delhi constituency -- claimed the Yamuna River passing through Delhi, starting from Palla, was the "most polluted stretch" in the world as all the untreated human and other wastes are discharged into the river.

"The Kejriwal government had not bothered to set up sewage treatment plants, though he had boasted in 2023 that he would clean up the river so well that he would take a dip in it by 2025," he said.

He also said that blaming stubble burning for Delhi's air pollution and placing the responsibility on farmers in neighbouring states was not justified.

"Stubble burning has existed for decades, but the main cause of Delhi's air pollution is the sharp spike in the number of vehicles on the roads, the lack of a robust public transport system, and severe erosion of the green cover," Mr Dikshit said.

He also claimed there were around 5,500 Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses in 2013, but the number has now reduced to around 3,000.