The meeting is scheduled to happen in the wake of the demolition drives, led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-governed civic bodies, which have dominated the city’s politics ever since bulldozers first rolled into Jahangirpuri last month.
The meeting is scheduled to happen in the wake of the demolition drives, led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-governed civic bodies, which have dominated the city’s politics ever since bulldozers first rolled into Jahangirpuri last month.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal called a meeting of 11 AAP MLAs at 11 a.m. on Saturday at his residence to discuss the politics over bulldozers.
The meeting is scheduled to happen in the wake of the demolition drives, led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-governed civic bodies, which have dominated the city’s politics ever since bulldozers first rolled into Jahangirpuri last month.
The political tussle between the two parties took another turn on Friday, with the Deputy Chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, on Friday saying he had written to the Union Home Minister Amit Shah urging him to stop the ongoing demolition drives.
‘India’s worst calamity’
In his letter to Mr. Shah, written on Wednesday, Mr. Sisodia said the civic bodies, at the behest of the BJP, were threatening to bulldoze houses of 70% of Delhi’s population. Mr. Sisodia said these drives “would result in India’s worst calamity in history, with over 60 lakh people being homeless as a result of the BJP’s bulldozer tactics in Delhi. There will be widespread outrage.”
The Deputy CM said the BJP through its ‘Bulldozer politics’ was planning to evict 63 lakh people from their homes in Delhi. He said notices had been issued to 50 lakh people living in 1,750 illegal colonies and 10 lakh people living in 860 slum areas and Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters.
“The Kejriwal government is vehemently opposed to any politics that threatens to devastate the nation’s capital,” Mr. Sisodia said.
He urged the Home Minister to take tough measures against the BJP’s actions in Delhi, which he claimed are harming the lives of ordinary people.
“In the last 17 years, BJP leaders and civic officials have furiously sanctioned unauthorised buildings across Delhi, made a lot of money, and are now displacing people. Action should be taken against such leaders and officials, not the public. First, their houses should be bulldozed,” Mr. Sisodia said in his letter.
Drives continue
Meanwhile, the civic bodies continued their demolition drive on Friday, with bulldozers rolling into several parts of the city — Najafgarh, Rohini and other areas — as anti-encroachment drives led by the South and North civic bodies continued.
In the Rohini zone, from Samaypur Badli Metro Station to Rohini Sector 18 Metro Station, close to 1300 metres of the stretch was cleared, while 75 temporary structures were removed by the North civic body.
In Najafgarh’s Goyala Dairy and neighbouring areas, the SDMC demolished 15 illegally constructed rooms and 42 tin sheds.
The North civic body Commissioner Sanjay Goel said the drives were part of “a routine exercise”.
Tug of war
The day also saw leaders of AAP and BJP literally threatening each other with bulldozers.
While Durgesh Pathak, AAP in-charge for municipal corporations, threatened to bulldoze allegedly illegal constructions at Delhi BJP Chief Adesh Gupta’s residence and office, if the BJP-governed corporation fails to act against it by 11 a.m. on Saturday.
In response, Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor wrote to the North civic body to demolish alleged encroachment outside AAP’s national headquarters in Rouse Avenue near ITO.
“Durgesh Pathak is alleging that a single stair outside our chief’s house in a congested middle-class colony is an encroachment, but remains silent on two rooms constructed after encroaching upon public land on the footpath outside the Aam Aadmi Party’s office,” Mr. Kapoor said.
