AAP, BJP clash over Chhath Puja ghat at Delhi’s Greater Kailash park

An intense war of words unfolded on Saturday between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi over a dispute regarding the establishment of Chhath Puja ghats in South Delhi’s Greater Kailash for the widely celebrated Purvanchali festival.
AAP leaders accused the BJP of obstructing local’s efforts to set up the ghat at a park managed by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) in Chirag Delhi. In response, the BJP levied similar accusations against AAP, alleging that the ruling party was hindering the creation of the Chhath ghat.
BJP leader Suraj Chauhan usually organises the Chhath Puja at this location each year, and preparations were set to begin after obtaining permission from the DDA. However, AAP workers also sought to perform the Chhath Puja at the same site and secured approval from the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM), leading to a clash between the two parties.
As tensions escalated and leaders from both sides exchanged accusations, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi criticised the BJP for engaging in “cheap politics”. She stated, “The BJP despises the people of Purvanchal. Their political tactics have degraded to the point of banning the Chhath Ghat in Greater Kailash through the DDA. Such despicable politics regarding Chhath, a revered festival of faith, will not be tolerated, and the BJP will face the repercussions”.
Saurabh Bharadwaj, AAP leader and Urban Development Minister, who also serves as the local MLA for Greater Kailash, visited the site to stage a sit-in protest. He alleged that the “BJP-controlled DDA” was obstructing Purvanchali residents from establishing the ghat, claiming that the BJP coerced the DDA to halt its construction and had the Delhi Police lock down the eight-year-old Chhath Puja site.

Bharadwaj further accused the BJP of being anti-Dalit, stating, “The Dalit community has used this ‘Bhim Pulia’ road for the past 300 years. Yet, for the last month, the BJP’s DDA has closed this road, preventing people from celebrating Chhath Puja due to its anti-Dalit and anti-Purvanchali stance. Why are they doing this?”
A DDA official informed the news agency PTI that a 6,000-square-meter area at Satpula Lake has already been designated for the Chhath Puja.
Countering AAP’s claims, BJP leader Shikha Rai accused a group of locals who arrived at the Satpula DDA Park to clean the ghat site of being prevented from doing so by “Bharadwaj’s men”.

She alleged, “The AAP workers issued threats and pressured the residents and BJP members to leave.” Rai added that in recent years, AAP workers had occupied the designated area days before the festival and imposed arbitrary conditions on its use.
The Purvanchalis, who are Bhojpuri-speaking individuals from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Jharkhand, represent a significant voting bloc in Delhi, accounting for 30 to 40 percent of the city’s approximately 1.5 crore electorate.