BJP MLA Falls Into Yamuna While Filming 'Clean River' Reel: Political Controversy Erupts

The incident occurred just before the Chhath Puja celebrations began in the city.

Delhi BJP MLA Ravinder Singh Negi accidentally fell into the Yamuna river last week while recording a video attempting to showcase the river's "cleanliness." This mishap happened as the city was preparing for Chhath Puja celebrations.

In the 19-second video clip, the Patparganj legislator can be seen holding two bottles while saying, "paani pike dikhani hai" (should drink the water and show). Shortly afterward, as Negi attempted to stand up from a kneeling position, he lost his balance, slipped, and tumbled into the river. Despite efforts from a bystander to prevent his fall, the BJP leader ended up in the water and had to pull himself out by grabbing onto a wooden structure.

AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha shared the footage on X and criticized the BJP leader, stating, "Making empty promises has become a profession for BJP leaders of the national capital."

He further remarked, "He has even surpassed the peak of lies. Perhaps, fed up with this politics of lies and pretense, Yamuna Maiyya has called him to her side herself."

The incident occurs amid ongoing accusations between the previous AAP administration and the current BJP government regarding the condition of the Yamuna during Chhath Puja celebrations, which concluded today. Last week, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj challenged the BJP-led government to prove the river is actually clean by daring Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Minister Parvesh Verma to "drink a litre of Yamuna water."

Bharadwaj claimed, "The chemical that was sprayed by the previous Delhi government is being sprayed by the current government. If Rekha Gupta says the Yamuna is clean, I ask her and Parvesh Verma to come and drink a litre of Yamuna water. I will then be convinced it's clean."

The BJP responded strongly, accusing the AAP of wasting over Rs 6,500 crore on ineffective clean-up projects during its ten-year rule.