Amidst an escalating water crisis in Delhi, the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Women Wing staged a bold “Matka Tod” protest in Nizamuddin Basti on Monday. Led by AAP Women Wing President Sarika Chaudhary, along with local women, the protest vehemently criticized the BJP government for failing to provide adequate water supply. Sarika Chaudhary lashed out at the BJP, stating that since its inception in Delhi, the government has pushed residents to the brink of crisis, forcing them to purchase bottled water.
“Under Arvind Kejriwal’s leadership, Delhi never faced such a shortage, but now, with the BJP in power, the city’s water supply has dried up,” said Sarika Chaudhary. The protesters made a clear demand: a return to the effective governance of Arvind Kejriwal.
During the Matka Phod protest held in the Nizamuddin basti, local women voiced deep distress over the rapid deterioration of living conditions under the BJP-led MCD and MLA Tarvinder Singh Marwah. They lamented the drastic decline in basic civic services and drew a sharp comparison with the governance during Arvind Kejriwal’s tenure, when, according to them, such hardships were non-existent.
The women said, “Under Arvind Kejriwal’s government, we never faced such difficulties. He always stood with the poor. The poor neither suffered nor were harassed under his leadership. But ever since Rekha Gupta and the BJP government have come to power, things have gone from bad to worse. People are being fired from jobs, and they claim there’s no budget—then why were promises made without financial planning? Local MLA Tarvinder Singh Marwah keeps saying he has no budget, so from where will he provide services?”
They described a severe water crisis plaguing the area: “For days, water doesn’t come. The taps remain dry for three to four days at a stretch.” Electricity supply is similarly erratic. “Sometimes it goes out for three to four hours, and sometimes for the entire night. The whole basti is in ruins,” they said.
The women highlighted the stark difference in cleanliness between the current regime and the previous AAP-led administration: “During Arvind Kejriwal’s time, cleanliness was prioritised. Now, there is filth everywhere. For the past three months, gutter water has been flowing onto the streets. On Mondays, when the market is held, trash piles up. People struggle to find a clean spot to stand.” The scarcity of clean drinking water has forced families to buy bottled water at ₹60 per bottle. “How long can we survive like this?” they asked.
They noted that the BJP is letting Delhi’s water crisis spiral out of control: “Since the BJP came to power, the water problem has reached its peak. When we went to complain, MLA Tarvinder Singh Marwah told us, ‘You didn’t vote for me, so why should I work for you?’” The protestors said the drains are overflowing with no cleaning in sight, and no action is being taken despite repeated complaints. “During the AAP government, there was never such misery. No poor person was evicted from roadsides, and schools had drastically improved. But now, everything is falling apart. The people of the basti do not want Rekha Gupta.”
They recounted their long association with the area: “We have lived in Nizamuddin since childhood. We got married and settled here. We’ve seen both Delhi and UP, but Delhi was at its best under Kejriwal. People desperately want him to return. There was never this level of filth before. Streets were swept twice a day—morning and evening.” They added that when they approached MLA Marwah with complaints, “He handed us a slip with his number and card—nothing else. No concrete response.”
Residents explained that the overflowing sewage has made daily prayers difficult, especially with Nizamuddin being a globally renowned religious site. “People from across the world visit Hazrat Nizamuddin. But now, with sewage flowing on the roads, it’s a disgrace.”
Despite registering complaints at the Jal Board office, the women said no action has been taken. “They told us the MLA has refused to allow any work in this area. In Khusro Nagar, water hasn’t come for four months. Sewage has been flowing for two and a half months. The MLA knows everything but refuses to act. That’s why the basti had to protest.”
They recalled that under Arvind Kejriwal’s government, “a submersible pump had been installed which largely resolved the sweet water issue. But under the BJP, governance is non-existent. Their 100-day report card has nothing to show.”
The residents of Nizamuddin basti have issued a clear demand: They want Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP government back—because only then, they believe, will Delhi’s dignity, cleanliness, and basic services be restored.
