New Delhi, November 2026 : The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government of Delhi of blaming Punjab’s farmers for the capital’s worsening air pollution in an attempt to conceal its own administrative failures.
The party strongly criticised Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa over what it described as misleading statements, alleging that the BJP was attempting to deflect responsibility despite a sharp decline in stubble-burning incidents in Punjab.
AAP questioned why Delhi’s pollution levels remained dangerously high when incidents of stubble burning in Punjab had reportedly fallen significantly this year.
Bhagwant Mann Government’s Partnership with Farmers
AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj challenged the BJP’s claims, saying that Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa could not mislead Delhi’s residents with what he described as false statements and figures.
Bharadwaj said the BJP had blamed Punjab for Delhi’s pollution last year as well, but official data from the Union government had contradicted its claims. According to him, stubble-burning incidents in Punjab had declined by 90 to 95 per cent since AAP came to power in the state.
“Before the Aam Aadmi Party government came to power in Punjab, around 71,000 stubble-burning cases were reported. With the sustained efforts of the Bhagwant Mann government and the cooperation of farmers, the number fell to just 5,000 last year. This year, the BJP minister himself has acknowledged that only around 1,000 cases have been reported. This clearly indicates a reduction of nearly 95 per cent in stubble-burning incidents in Punjab,” Bharadwaj said.
AAP Questions Artificial Rain Initiative
Bharadwaj also raised questions about the qualifications and functioning of Delhi’s Environment Minister, alleging that the government had failed to take effective scientific measures to address pollution.
He claimed that the Delhi government had spent public money on artificial rain proposals without carrying out cloud seeding or artificial rainfall on the ground.
According to Bharadwaj, the Union government had issued a written communication to the concerned department stating that artificial rain was not feasible under Delhi’s prevailing weather conditions during the season. Despite this, he alleged, the government spent crores of rupees on the initiative.
AAP asked who would be held accountable for what it described as the wastage of public funds.
Allegations of Manipulation in AQI Monitoring
Bharadwaj also accused the Delhi government of manipulating air-quality data through the placement of monitoring stations.
He said Delhi had 39 air-quality monitoring stations when the BJP assumed power. The government subsequently added seven stations last year and 13 more this year.
Bharadwaj alleged that the government was planning to establish 20 additional monitoring stations in green areas with relatively low pollution levels, which could artificially reduce the city’s average Air Quality Index (AQI).
“The objective should be to improve the quality of Delhi’s air, not manipulate figures on paper,” he said.
Bharadwaj further alleged that water tankers had previously been deployed around AQI monitoring stations in Anand Vihar and Dwarka, with water sprayed directly over sensors to lower recorded pollution levels.
He said the alleged practice had been exposed last year and questioned the government’s approach to pollution control. Bharadwaj also made personal remarks about Sirsa’s background and suitability for handling the Environment portfolio.
AAP Says BJP Must Accept Responsibility
AAP national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda criticised Sirsa, comparing his response to that of an irresponsible student who fails an examination after neglecting studies and then blames another student.
Dhanda said the BJP government was entirely responsible for Delhi’s dangerous pollution because of its alleged inaction.
He claimed that before AAP formed the government in Punjab in 2022, the state recorded around 80,000 farm-fire incidents annually. According to him, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s government persuaded farmers and provided resources, bringing the number below 5,000 last year and reducing it to almost negligible levels this year.
AAP Flags Stubble Burning in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh
Dhanda also questioned the BJP leadership’s silence over stubble-burning incidents in BJP-ruled states.
He alleged that farm-fire incidents in Uttar Pradesh were increasing by 25 to 30 per cent annually, particularly in Meerut, Aligarh, Agra and other parts of western Uttar Pradesh.
According to Dhanda, farmers in the state had not received adequate modern equipment or financial assistance from the Yogi Adityanath government to prevent stubble burning.
He claimed that Madhya Pradesh was facing an even more serious situation, with farm-fire incidents increasing by 153 per cent annually.
“Last year, 52 per cent of all stubble-burning incidents recorded across the country occurred in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, where the BJP has been in power for years. Farm fires are reaching record levels in BJP-ruled states, but BJP leaders remain silent,” Dhanda said.
He asked the BJP to explain what measures it had taken to prevent stubble burning in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, and what concrete steps Sirsa had taken to improve Delhi’s air quality.
AAP Demands Accountability from BJP Leadership
Dhanda challenged the Delhi government to identify even one effective measure it had implemented to control pollution.
He said the government was aware that seasonal changes typically worsen smog and pollution in Delhi during this period but had allegedly failed to make adequate preparations.
He also referred to previous claims about cloud seeding and artificial rain, alleging that the initiatives had not produced results and that public money had been misused.
AAP maintained that blaming Punjab and tarnishing the image of farmers would not improve Delhi’s air quality. The party said a comparison of AQI levels in Punjab and Delhi would show that Punjab’s air was relatively clean, while Delhi continued to experience hazardous pollution.
The party held Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP leadership responsible for addressing the capital’s pollution crisis.
The allegations and figures cited in the statement reflect AAP’s claims and have not been independently verified in this report.
