AAP vs BJP Again Over Demolition Activities In Delhi

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday alleged that the Delhi BJP MPs were "ruining" the city and doing nothing to stop demolition activities being conducted by different agencies.

AAP MLA Durgesh Pathak said the MPs of the BJP in Delhi did not do anything despite winning by a big margin since 2014.

"Now, they are trying to ruin Delhi. Recently, the DDA undertook a largescale demolition drive at Khyber Pass in Chandni Chowk, but the local MP Praveen Khandelwal did not visit the affected people living there for 70-80 years," Mr Pathak charged.

Mr Khandelwal said that Pathak was "lying" and trying to divert the attention of people from the problems of drinking water, hike in electricity bills and waterlogging due to the "inaction" of the Kejriwal government.

Targeting the New Delhi BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj, Mr Pathak claimed that notices were put up by the Railways in Patel Nagar to Brar Square, under her Lok Sabha constituency, that the slums there would be removed, but she did not do anything about it.

"Some people tried to call her but could not talk to her. There are several slums right from Patel Nagar to Brar Square that are going to be removed in the demolition drive," he said.

Mr Pathak alleged that the "silence" of the BJP MPs showed that perhaps they were supporting such drives.

He demanded both the BJP MPs intervene on behalf of the affected people to prevent demolition activities in their constituencies.

Meanwhile, Ms Swaraj's office responded to the allegations and said that the AAP MLA was "misleading" the people.

The fact is that people from Patel Nagar and Brar Square already met Swaraj twice in the past over the issue, it said.

Delhi BJP, in a statement, counter-attacked Mr Pathak, asking him to list any work done by its Rajya Sabha MPs in Delhi.

Mr Pathak before trying to mislead poor residents of Khyber Pass or Brar Square, should tell why the Kejriwal government has not given a single flat to any homeless out of the 40,000 Rajiv Awas flats at Narela and adjoining areas whose allotment has been pending since 2014-15, it said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)