After years of slow but persistent progress toward cleaner celebrations, Delhi has fallen back into its old habits. The lifting of the cracker ban this Diwali marked the collapse of reason. The decision to allow so-called "green firecrackers" was pushed by the Rekha Gupta–led BJP government, who, by the way, were most outspokenly critical of fireworks when others were in power. The bigger shame is that it was endorsed by a compliant judiciary. Ergo, years of effort to make the air breathable again have been undone.

For years, public campaigns, court orders, and even religious appeals had led to some decline in firecracker use. Citizens began to comprehend the link between fireworks and the air their children breathe. But this year, that understanding was trampled under the weight of religion and politics.

The attempt to frame the bursting of crackers as a "Hindu right" was no accident. It fits neatly into the Hindutva playbook of mixing faith with defiance, portraying environmental responsibility as an attack on tradition, when it is convenient for them. Under the BJP, Truth has lost all objectivity.

The BJP's Delhi government, instead of leading with science, chose to pander to this sentiment. Rekha Gupta, still new in her role as Chief Minister, has failed her first major test of governance. When the city's air turned poisonous after Diwali, her ministers were quick to shift blame — to citizens, to stubble burning, to weather — but not once did they accept responsibility for encouraging the very behaviour that caused it.

Those who continue to justify bursting crackers as a matter of faith or celebration are, quite simply, dullards of the highest degree. They are the ones who cough in the same smoke they create. No belief system can defend self-destruction. The refusal to acknowledge this elementary truth reveals a deep social failure — one that politics has only worsened.

The courts, too, have failed the people. The Supreme Court's decision to allow "green firecrackers" during "restricted hours" was framed as a compromise. In reality, it was a surrender. The same institution that is supposed to take the lead in environmental protection is now hesitant to confront the majoritarian sentiment that views any restriction as an affront to religion.

Even the "green" alternative is a deception. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and its lab, NEERI, which developed these crackers, have not released the chemical composition of the crackers. Their claims remain unverified, shielded by non-disclosure agreements with private manufacturers. If the crackers are truly cleaner, why the secrecy? Why should public health depend on confidential corporate deals? Science thrives on transparency and peer review. Silence only fuels suspicion.

Delhi's polluted air is not a natural phenomenon. It is the result of political choices, of greed, of misplaced pride. What was once seen as a civic duty to protect our shared environment has now been recast as a political test of loyalty. This Diwali, we have failed collectively; evil has thwarted good. The light of reason has dimmed, and what remains is the smoke of our own making.