The national capital is once again witnessing a political showdown, this time over a critical issue—electricity supply. Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal launched a scathing attack on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday, blaming the recent wave of power outages on the alleged mismanagement by the BJP-led administration. Kejriwal took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to express his frustration over what he called a rapid deterioration of the robust electricity system that he claims was built during AAP's decade-long governance. “In the last ten years, we have fixed the power system of Delhi with great difficulty. It is said that it takes years to fix anything, but it can be damaged in just two days,” he wrote.

He backed his statements with figures, citing that on Wednesday, the peak power demand in Delhi stood at 5462 MW, yet there were reports of widespread outages. Drawing a comparison to his administration, Kejriwal mentioned that last year the city witnessed a peak demand of 8500 MW without significant interruptions in electricity supply. His remarks were a clear indication of his belief that the BJP government has been unable to maintain the infrastructure put in place by AAP. The timing of his statement also aligns with rising public concern over the looming summer heat, with temperatures expected to soar and electricity demand to follow suit. “What will happen in the coming weeks when the heat in Delhi will increase and the demand for electricity will also increase?” Kejriwal questioned in his post, drawing attention to the urgency of the matter.

AAP's Continued Criticism Amid Rising Outages

Kejriwal’s statements come as part of a broader campaign by AAP to highlight alleged governance failures under the BJP in Delhi. Atishi, AAP leader and former Chief Minister who succeeded Kejriwal briefly before the party lost control, has also been active on social media over the past 24 hours. Re-sharing citizens’ posts complaining about scheduled outages, Atishi criticized Power Minister Ashish Sood and the BJP for what she described as a routine failure. “Delhites now routinely calling out the excuses publicly made by Power Minister Ashish Sood that these are scheduled power cuts for maintenance,” she posted, echoing concerns of many residents who are facing daily disruptions.

Atishi’s posts point to a growing frustration among the public, as citizens continue to express discontent on social media platforms, questioning the rationale behind prolonged and frequent outages at a time when demand hasn’t even peaked. This is not the first time Kejriwal has raised an alarm. Back in March, he had similarly accused the BJP government of failing to maintain uninterrupted electricity in Delhi—a claim which was promptly refuted by Power Minister Ashish Sood. The Minister, defending his department’s record, had released data showing that in the last 12 months of AAP’s rule, Delhi had experienced over 21,600 power cuts lasting more than an hour each.

The debate over electricity supply in Delhi is heating up alongside the weather. While AAP continues to claim that its infrastructure was capable of handling higher loads without interruption, BJP leaders argue that maintenance and infrastructure issues existed even during AAP’s tenure. With summer temperatures expected to rise in the coming weeks, the political blame game is likely to intensify. Delhiites, however, remain caught in the middle, hoping that political sparring doesn't come at the cost of a reliable electricity supply. As the narrative unfolds, all eyes will be on how the Delhi administration tackles the growing demands of the summer season and whether it can offer consistent electricity without outages—or if the power struggle will become more than just political.