Delhi Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) President Saurabh Bhardwaj on Wednesday accused four government agencies of colluding to manipulate air quality data in the national capital on Diwali night, labelling it a "criminal act". His allegations followed reports that the Nehru Nagar air quality monitoring station recorded an extraordinarily high Air Quality Index (AQI) of 1763 before being abruptly shut down.
In a statement, Bhardwaj expressed outrage, saying, "They are corrupt and criminals; what they have done is a criminal act... Four different government agencies worked together to collect Delhi's pollution data on the night of Diwali... Today's news states that Nehru Nagar station recorded an AQI of 1763, after which it was shut down. They are playing with people's health..."
Bhardwaj’s accusations came shortly after Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa presented data asserting that Diwali celebrations had only a minimal impact on the city's pollution levels. Sirsa accused AAP of scapegoating Diwali, Hindus, and Sanatanis to push a narrative that blames the festival for Delhi’s air quality issues, calling it a "sin" to link the festival with the capital’s worsening pollution.
In an interview with national media, Sirsa criticised AAP’s motives, alleging a politically driven agenda to curb Hindu religious practices. He stated, "It's not the crackers... The Aam Aadmi Party is putting all its efforts into proving that the pollution in Delhi is due to Diwali. They're focused on this because they have a particular vote bank to please. They're working hard to ban Diwali by saying that lighting lamps and bursting firecrackers creates smoke."
To support his argument, Sirsa provided comparative AQI data from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). He noted that the AQI on the eve of Diwali was 345, lower than previous years’ figures of 414 in 2020 and 382 in 2021.
After Diwali firecrackers, the AQI rose marginally to 356, an increase of just 11 points. Sirsa contrasted this with years when firecracker bans were in place, pointing out that pollution levels still rose significantly. "Last year, despite a ban on firecrackers, the AQI went up from 328 on the eve of Diwali to 360 the following morning, a rise of 32 points. The year before, in 2023, it increased from 218 to 301, marking an 83-point jump," he explained.
Sirsa argued that attributing Delhi’s pollution solely to Diwali firecrackers is misleading. "It would, therefore, be misleading to blame Diwali firecrackers alone for the rise in pollution levels. There may have been some impact, but what the Aam Aadmi Party is attempting to suggest is that Diwali, Hindus, and Sanatanis are responsible for Delhi's pollution, and that is a sin," he asserted. He further accused AAP of exploiting the pollution issue to appeal to a specific voter base by advocating for bans on Diwali traditions, such as lighting diyas and bursting firecrackers.
"Aam Aadmi Party is fully focused on proving that the pollution here in Delhi is due to Diwali. This is because they have a particular vote bank whom they want to appease, and that's why they are trying hard to prove that Diwali needs to be banned due to smoke from diyas and crackers, due to which pollution happens," Sirsa said.
The controversy reignited the ongoing political blame game in Delhi, where the AQI was recorded at 345 on the eve of Diwali and climbed to 356 after firecracker use, prompting AAP leaders to claim that the festival worsens the city’s winter smog. Sirsa dismissed this focus as "dishonest," emphasising that systemic issues like stubble burning in neighbouring states contribute more significantly to pollution than firecrackers.
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He remarked, "It's dishonest to solely blame firecrackers for pollution. Yes, they may have had some effect, but the opposition is focused on 'Diwali, Hindus, and Sanatanis are responsible for pollution...' I do feel they are trying to communalise the issue. If they were fair, they could have raised this yesterday as well; the AQI was 345 then, too, but they didn't tweet about it. They're also claiming the data is manipulated, but they also say we manipulate EVMs too," drawing a parallel to AAP’s allegations of electoral fraud.
Sirsa sarcastically conceded defeat to AAP’s "propaganda machine", saying, "In front of Kejriwal and his team's lies, we fold our hands." We don't even claim to match them. We admit, we're nothing in front of their lies. Big names have surrendered before them. Their lies are unmatched."
However, he stressed the transparency of the data, noting, "But the data is public, from CPCB, DPCC... Every minute's data is available online... But they want to control it... They thought AQI would shoot up, and they would create a ruckus against us. In the morning, they attempted to discredit Diwali, and in the evening, they claimed that the data was fake. If the data is fake, then how is pollution even real?"
According to the CPCB, Delhi’s overall AQI was 351 as of 4 p.m. on Tuesday, post-Diwali. Specific readings showed an AQI of 343 at Lodhi Road, 274 in Sirifort, 282 in Greater Noida, and 324 in Ghaziabad. For context, the AQI scale classifies 0–50 as 'good', 51–100 as 'satisfactory', 101–200 as 'moderate', 201–300 as 'poor,' 301–400 as 'very poor,' and 401–500 as 'severe'.
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