Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Dec 9: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Monday sharply criticised Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s statement equating the Air Quality Index (AQI) with temperature, questioning, “When did this new science come?”

In a post on X, the former Delhi CM accused Gupta of indirectly admitting that water was being sprayed near AQI monitoring stations to manipulate pollution readings. “The Chief Minister has at least accepted that wherever AQI monitors are installed, water spraying is being done so that the truth about pollution doesn't reach the people of Delhi,” he wrote, alleging an attempt to “hide the data and show clean air.”

Kejriwal also demanded to know the logic behind Gupta’s comparison. “When did this new science come about that AQI has now become temperature?” he asked.

The Delhi BJP government has been under scrutiny after multiple videos surfaced online, allegedly showing water being sprayed around AQI monitors to reduce the recorded pollution levels.

Meanwhile, the national capital continues to gasp under worsening air quality. Delhi’s AQI remained in the ‘very poor’ category on Monday, clocking 314 at 4 pm, up from 308 a day earlier, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Forecasts warn that air quality could slip into the ‘very poor to severe’ range in the coming days.

At the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit 2025, CM Rekha Gupta had defended the watering of hotspots when asked about the opposition’s allegations. “A hotspot is an area with the highest pollution levels. What’s the solution? You spray there, you water it,” she said, adding that AQI works “like a temperature” that watering could help address.

Her remarks have since sparked sharp political reactions, with AAP accusing the government of masking the capital’s pollution crisis instead of addressing it.