Delhi Irrigation Dept seeks FIR against unidentified persons for allegedly dumping dead fish in Yamuna ahead of Chhath Puja

Seeking police action ahead of the Chhath Puja festivities, the Delhi government's Irrigation and Flood Control Department (I&FCD) has submitted a complaint to the Sonia Vihar Police Station requesting the registration of an FIR against unidentified individuals for allegedly dumping dead fish into the Yamuna River to "tarnish" the administration's image.

Seeking police action ahead of Chhath Puja festivities, the Delhi government's Irrigation and Flood Control Department (I&FCD) has submitted a complaint to the Sonia Vihar Police Station requesting the registration of an FIR against unidentified individuals for allegedly dumping dead fish into the Yamuna River to "tarnish" the administration's image. In the letter dated November 12, bearing a receiving stamp from the Sonia Vihar police of the same date, Executive Engineer (Civil Division-IV) Somnath Kashyap flagged the issue in view of the November 15-16 celebrations, when large numbers of devotees are expected to assemble on ghats along the Yamuna to offer prayers.

The Station House Officer (SHO), Kashyap, stated that unidentified persons were allegedly dumping dead fish into the river "with the sole objective of tarnishing the image of the Delhi Government, which is organising the Chhath Festival on a large scale." The official further contended that such conduct "not only hurts the religious sentiment of mass devotees but also tarnishes the image of the Delhi Government," urging police to investigate, identify those behind the "unlawful, antisocial and reprehensible activities," and initiate strict legal proceedings. Copies of the complaint were also forwarded to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (Karawal Nagar) and senior I&FCD officials.

The complaint follows the circulation of videos on social media showing dead fish floating near the Sonia Vihar stretch of the Yamuna, prompting questions over water quality even as the exact cause of the fish mortality remains unconfirmed. Earlier, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa on Friday accused the AAP of dumping dead fish into the Yamuna River ahead of Chhath Puja, declaring that there is no greater sin than the act of dumping dead fish in the river.

"No one could have imagined that politics could sink this low—what Mr Kejriwal and his associates have done. There can be no greater sin than this...Chhath Puja is set to take place here—worship of Chhath Maiya—where women observing the fast will arrive to offer *arghya* (ritual offerings), and into this very water, they are dumping these fish...Dead fish—what could be a greater sin than this?" said Sirsa. In a self-made video, Sirsa alleged that Arvind Kejriwal and his associates are distressed by the start of the 'Namo Yamuna River Safari' cruise service, claiming that Kejriwal and his associates are allegedly hiring people to bring dead fish from the market and film videos.

"The BJP, under the leadership of Rekha Gupta, achieved a milestone by cleaning 60 per cent of the Yamuna. Now that a cruise service is operating on the river, they [Kejriwal and his associates] are so distressed that they are having people from across Delhi go there, bring dead fish from the market, and film videos with them," said Sirsa. "I want to tell the people of Delhi: Have you ever seen white fish in the Yamuna? Where have these dead fish come from? When there were no live white fish in the Yamuna, where did the dead ones come from? The Aam Aadmi Party can sink to such lows for just one sole purpose—because blemishes are appearing on their 10-year incompetent government," added Sirsa.

Sirsa's remarks came after officials of the Irrigation and Flood Control Department claimed that unknown people are allegedly dumping dead fish into the Yamuna River ahead of the Chhath festival, with the sole objective of "tarnishing" the image of the Delhi government. The Chhath festival is scheduled to be celebrated on November 15th and 16th, 2026, along the Yamuna River, during which a large number of devotees are expected to visit ghats  along the river to offer their prayers. (ANI)