‘Not AQI but Messi’: BJP Releases Counter Video After Rekha Gupta Faces Chant Row at Messi Event

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday released a counter video after a clip went viral showing Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta allegedly facing chants of “AQI, AQI” during Argentine football icon Lionel Messi’s visit to the capital. The BJP claimed the viral clip was misleading and asserted that the crowd was actually chanting “Messi, Messi”.

The controversy erupted after Messi concluded his India tour with an appearance at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Monday — coinciding with what was Delhi’s most polluted day this winter. The Air Quality Index (AQI) touched a hazardous 498 in the morning, later easing to 427 by evening.

BJP claims ‘real video’ shows Messi chants

Sharing the counter clip on social media, the BJP said it represented the “real video” from the event. In the footage, the crowd can be heard chanting Messi’s name as the Chief Minister felicitated the football star.

“Messi, Messi — this is the real video. The more excited the people were, the more disheartened AAP leaders were. That is why AAP allegedly circulated a false video,” the BJP said in its post, accusing the Aam Aadmi Party of distorting the moment for political mileage.

Pollution becomes political flashpoint

The video war has intensified the ongoing BJP vs AAP confrontation over Delhi’s pollution crisis, a recurring winter issue that has dominated political discourse in the capital.

AAP’s Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, who shared the earlier clip showing ‘AQI’ chants, described the episode as an “international shame”. He blamed both the BJP-led Centre and the Delhi government for the worsening air quality.

“In a country where everyone is talking about pollution, the Prime Minister remains silent,” Bharadwaj said.

BJP hits back, blames AAP’s decade in power

Responding to the criticism, Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa blamed the AAP for Delhi’s pollution, citing its ten-year rule in the capital. While apologising to residents for the toxic air, Sirsa said it was unrealistic to expect dramatic improvements within months of the BJP assuming office in February.

“I apologise for the pollution in Delhi. This disease was handed over to us by the AAP, and we are working to fix it,” he said.

AAP counters with ‘AQI data manipulation’ charge

Bharadwaj fired back, accusing the BJP government of hypocrisy. He recalled a March 2025 BJP post claiming Delhiites were breathing clean air shortly after the party took charge.

“Today the BJP is apologising for pollution, but these are the same people who claimed clean air within a month of coming to power. They thought they could fool the entire country by manipulating AQI data,” he said.

As pollution levels remain severe and political tempers flare, the Messi event controversy has become the latest symbol of the bitter battle between Delhi’s two main political rivals.