Kejriwal promises to waive inflated water bills if AAP wins Delhi elections

New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday promised to waive all inflated water bills for domestic consumers in the capital if his party comes to power after the upcoming assembly elections, expected to be held in February.

“Delhi government provides 20,000 litres of water per month to all consumers in Delhi. Around 12 lakh (1.2 million) families receive zero water bills monthly. After I went to jail, I don’t know what they (Bharatiya Janata Party) did, but people started receiving huge water bills running into thousands and lakhs of rupees. People who feel their water bills are incorrect (inflated) should not pay them. Once AAP forms the government again, we will waive these inflated water bills,” Kejriwal announced at the AAP headquarters on Saturday.

Kejriwal, who was arrested in March 2024 in connection with alleged irregularities in the 2021-22 Delhi excise policy and spent around six months in jail before being released on bail in September, said that the details of the scheme under which the water bills will be waived will be disclosed after the election.

With around 2.7 million water consumers registered with the Delhi Jal Board, the primary water supply agency in the capital, Delhiites have been receiving 20,000 liters of free water per month since the 2015 assembly elections, in which AAP won 67 out of 70 seats.

Kejriwal said that after the Covid-19 pandemic, during which monthly readings of water metres were largely affected, many consumers reported inflated water bills and chose not to pay them.

In February 2024, the AAP government announced a one-time settlement scheme for unpaid water bills, but it could not be implemented due to what the AAP attributed to “bureaucratic tussles with the elected government”.

A response from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was not immediately available. The story will be updated when the BJP responds.

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Kejriwal also announced a series of welfare schemes, including increasing the allowances under the Mahila Samman Yojana to ₹2,100 per month for all women, providing free treatment for all elderly in private and government hospitals, and introducing the Pujari Granthi Yojana, under which ₹18,000 per month will be given to Hindu and Sikh priests.

Assembly elections in Delhi are likely to take place in February as the current term of the Delhi assembly is set to expire on February 23.