Delhi’s former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday accused Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini of committing a crime by “sending poisonous water to Delhi and trying to create an artificial water crisis”, reported The Indian Express.

The Aam Aadmi Party leader said he was being targeted by the Election Commission for raising concerns about the contamination of Delhi’s water supply.

Kejriwal, accompanied by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, appeared before the Election Commission to submit his response to a second notice regarding his claim that Haryana was releasing contaminated water into the Yamuna.

The poll panel later stated that it had received Kejriwal’s reply and would examine it “in detail” before taking a decision “on merit”.

“The Commission gave a patient hearing to AAP leader Sh Kejriwal, at a very short notice today & received his reply,” the Election Commission said on social media. “The Full Commission, without getting swayed by personal insinuations & offensive strategy being in play, decided to examine reply in detail & take decision(s) on merit.”

The controversy began on January 27 when Kejriwal shared a video of Delhi Chief Minister Atishi alleging that the Bharatiya Janata Party was conspiring to poison the city’s drinking water. The next day, Atishi cited a letter from the Delhi Jal Board’s chief executive officer, which stated that while the city’s water treatment plants could handle ammonia levels up to one part per million, contamination in the Yamuna river exceeded permissible limits.

However, the Delhi Jal Board later contradicted Kejriwal’s claim, calling it “factually incorrect” and “misleading”. The board stated that ammonia levels in the river naturally rise between October and February.

On Tuesday, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Haryana government filed a first information report against Kejriwal for making the allegations. The Election Commission, responding to a complaint from the Bharatiya Janata Party, issued a notice to Kejriwal seeking evidence for his claims.

The poll panel said a preliminary assessment suggested Kejriwal’s remarks could promote “disharmony and enmity between groups” and asked him to submit a “specific and pointed reply” by Friday.

Ahead of his meeting with the chief election commissioner on Friday, Kejriwal told reporters: “Atishi and Bhagwant Mann wrote a letter to the Election Commission raising the issue and asking them to step in. The Election Commission did not take any action… Instead, I was served with a notice for raising my voice.”

In his formal response, Kejriwal on Friday reiterated that his allegation was based on “dangerously high levels of ammonia contamination” in Delhi’s water supply as per the Delhi Jal Board chief executive officer’s statement dated January 27.

Calling the Election Commission’s “refusal” to direct Haryana to stop polluting Delhi’s waters “baffling,” Kejriwal accused the poll panel of “omission and negligence of corrupt practices by the Bharatiya Janata Party”.

“My only concern is the health and safety of the people of Delhi, and I will fight for the protection of our democratic principles,” he wrote. “Whatever illegal punishment you may wish to impose on me under the instruction of the Bharatiya Janata Party is a small price to pay for it, and I welcome it with open arms.”

The Delhi Assembly elections are scheduled for February 4, with votes to be counted on February 8.