'BJP spreads garbage... vote for cleanliness': Kejriwal's Delhi polls war cry

Delhi Municipal Corporation election was originally scheduled for April 2022 but was postponed due to the centre merging the three bodies and the delimitation exercise.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday tweeted two photos - one of garbage overflowing on to a street and the other of a landfill - and called on residents of the national capital to 'vote for cleanliness'.

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP Convener Arvind Kejriwal. (PTI Photo)

The tweet came minutes after the Delhi State Election Commission said the (long pending) municipal election will be held on December 4.

"In the last 15 years, BJP has spread garbage all over Delhi... created mountains of garbage. This time, on December 4, people of Delhi will vote for cleanliness..." the AAP leader said.

The issue of garbage collection and disposal in Delhi is a major flashpoint between the AAP and the BJP, and will be a key issue in next month's election.

"Ghazipur garbage mound is mountain of BJP's bad deeds and corruption in civic bodies. The MCD poll will be fought on the issue of garbage," he had said.

READ | Kejriwal visits landfill site, attacks BJP over failure in waste management

Last month AAP lawmakers protested near north Delhi's Bhalswa landfill to highlight what they claim is 'garbage mismanagement' by the BJP.

The AAP's Durgesh Pathak said the BJP's 'corruption' had resulted in three mountains of garbage, and that the party 'will not allow the BJP to create 16 more garbage mountains'.

Last week Kejriwal visited a landfill in Ghazipur and he too blamed the BJP.

"People living several km from these mountains have to suffer... similar situation prevails in every nook and corner of the city. Over the last 15 years, this is the achievement of the BJP," he said.

READ | Delhi CM visits Ghazipur garbage dump, lashes out at civic body

The BJP responded by accusing Kejriwal of making baseless allegations, and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi said it had no plans to set up new landfills.

BJP workers shared videos of garbage in areas represented by AAP councillors and sought to highlight pollution levels and frothing in the Yamuna river.

Next month's election is long overdue; they were scheduled for April but the central government then proposed to unify the three civic bodies that constitute the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, triggering a furious row.

The proposal to reduce the number of wards from 272 to 250 was another contentious issue, and a Congress petition is pending in the Delhi high court.

The court will hear the matter next on December 14.