Delhi Not Issuing Economically Weaker Section Certificates, Says AAP; BJP Denies

AAP on Tuesday accused the BJP government here of halting the issuance of Economically Weaker Section (EWS) certificates, thereby affecting access to education and healthcare for eligible families.

The BJP rejected the allegation, clarifying that Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has only called for the framing of proper guidelines to prevent the misuse of the facility.

Citing the minutes of an official meeting, the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP's) Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed the government has decided to pause the issuance of new certificates.

"The government will examine the EWS certificates issued so far as there is an apprehension that a large number of ineligible people have been issued EWS certificates. No new EWS certificates will be issued by the revenue department till further orders," he said.

The former Delhi minister said the decision will immediately impact students applying to institutes such as Delhi University and Indraprastha University, where EWS certificates are required for the 10 per cent quota.

He also flagged concerns about patients being denied hospital beds and services reserved for the EWS category.

Mr Bharadwaj alleged that the move would deprive the poor of access to education, healthcare, and job opportunities under the EWS category and termed it a "deliberate attempt" to benefit private institutions.

Claiming that thousands of students and job aspirants could be affected due to the "halt"  in issuance of EWS certificates, the AAP leader said, "This government is entirely anti-poor." Targeting Chief Minister Gupta, he questioned the rationale behind "punishing the public" instead of taking action against officials allegedly responsible for issuing certificates to ineligible persons.

"How many officials has she suspended? If the certificates were wrongly issued, why hasn't any Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Additional District Magistrate (ADM) or District Magistrate (DM) faced action?" Mr Bharadwaj asked

The AAP leader also accused the BJP of trying to avoid accountability in what he called an attempt to shield private institutions and benefit them by curbing EWS access.

Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva rejected the claims, saying the issuance of EWS certificates has not been stopped.

He clarified that the chief minister has only called for the formulation of proper guidelines to prevent the misuse of the certificates. The economically weaker sections would continue getting benefits, Mr Sachdeva asserted.

He accused AAP of spreading misinformation to avoid scrutiny of the alleged irregularities during its rule.

Fake EWS and caste certificates were issued between 2015 and 2024 under pressure from AAP leaders, resulting in their misuse in school admissions and availing of hospital facilities and other government benefits, the BJP leader claimed.

"The people of Delhi understand why Saurabh Bharadwaj is creating a controversy. He fears an investigation will expose a massive scam," Mr Sachdeva said. 

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