The Delhi government has asked the Station House Officer of Sonia Vihar police station to register an FIR over the alleged dumping of dead fish into the Yamuna ahead of Chhath Puja, escalating a political dispute over pollution and the river’s condition.
The request was made by the Delhi Irrigation and Flood Control Department in a letter to the Sonia Vihar police station. According to the department, unidentified people dumped dead fish into the river before the festival in an attempt to damage the Delhi government’s image.
The reported incident has triggered a public confrontation between the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party. The competing allegations have focused on whether the fish died because of pollution in the Yamuna or were deliberately brought to the site and placed in the river.
AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj said large numbers of dead fish were seen floating on the polluted water of the Yamuna. He alleged that the incident exposed what he described as false claims by the BJP government about cleaning the river. Bharadwaj also shared a video on his X account showing a person holding dead fish in both hands.
Delhi Water Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh rejected the allegation that the fish deaths were caused by pollution. He said AAP workers had brought the dead fish from elsewhere and placed them in the Yamuna, and accused them of contributing to further pollution of the river.
The irrigation department’s letter, as reported by Live Hindustan, attributes the alleged dumping to unidentified people and asks the police to register a case. The report does not provide details of an FIR number, the sections of law sought by the department, or any police response to the request.
The dispute comes as preparations and public attention around Chhath Puja have increased scrutiny of water quality and conditions along the Yamuna’s banks. The incident has therefore brought together two separate concerns: the immediate question of how the dead fish entered the river and the continuing political contest over responsibility for pollution and river-cleaning claims.
The next formal step reported by the department is the police’s consideration of the request for an FIR at Sonia Vihar police station. The supplied report does not state whether the police have registered a case or begun an investigation.
