In a scathing expose, Senior AAP Leader and Minister in the Delhi Government, Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj sheds light on the dire situation surrounding the demolition of homes in Delhi. Asserting that the BJP-led Central Government’s DDA is targeting thousands of Hindu refugees from Pakistan, the AAP leader highlighted a disturbing trend of demolitions affecting Delhi’s impoverished communities since the arrival of the new Lieutenant Governor (LG). With DDA and L&DO playing pivotal roles under the LG’s purview, the Delhi Minister questioned the motives behind these actions, urging clarity on the perceived enmity towards the city’s marginalized population. Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj questioned the Centre’s handling of the situation, raising doubts about the efficacy of the LG’s oversight and sparking calls for immediate intervention to address the housing crisis plaguing the nation’s capital.
AAP’s Senior Leader and Delhi’s Cabinet Minister Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj, addressing a press conference held at the party headquarters, said that there has been a significant uproar in the Delhi Legislative Assembly in recent days regarding the continuous demolition of people’s homes in various parts of Delhi since the new Lieutenant Governor has arrived in Delhi for the past 1.5 years. In this series, notices have also been distributed by the central agencies to demolish the slum settlements located near the Gurudwara close to Majnu Ka Tilla yesterday and the day before. Those poor helpless people have packed up all their belongings in fear of the central government’s bulldozers.
“The agencies of the central government, be it DDA, L&DO, Railways, or Archaeological Survey of India, are continuously involved in demolishing the homes of people living in Delhi’s poor ‘jhuggis’ under the central government’s control. In this, the biggest role has been played by DDA and L&DO, which directly come under the jurisdiction of Delhi’s LG, Mr. Vinay Saxena,” the Senior AAP leader said.
“In this series, now, DDA, directly under the jurisdiction of the LG of Delhi, has issued notices to demolish the homes of Hindu refugees from Pakistan, who have been living near Gurudwara close to Majnu Ka Tilla for the past approximately 13 years. They have been told to vacate the place by packing up their belongings and DDA is going to demolish their homes on 7th and 8th March 2024 using bulldozers. I want to know what enmity the LG has with poor people living in ‘jhuggis’ in different parts of Delhi,” he said.
Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj further stated that there is a stark difference between the actions and words of the BJP-led central government. The entire nation knows that the BJP fights elections in the name of ‘Hindutva’, claims to be a party for Hindu interests, and seeks votes from the people of the country in the name of ‘Hindutva’. However, the BJP-led central government, claiming to be pro-Hindu, is ready to demolish the homes of thousands of Hindu refugees who saved their lives by coming from Pakistan. The double character of the BJP is now exposed in front of the entire country.
The AAP leader mentioned, “The BJP has nothing to do with either Hindutva or Hindus; the BJP only and only continues its political bread and butter in the name of Hindutva. If the BJP is pro-Hindu, then the BJP-led central government should immediately stop the order to demolish the homes of these thousands of Hindu refugees who have been living near Majnu Ka Tilla for the past 13 years, came from Pakistan, and take strict action against all those officials who conspired to demolish the homes of these Hindu refugees.”
Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj said that whether it’s the case of the ‘jhuggis’ near the Sunder Nursery or the case of Ghousia Colony slum settlement located in Mehrauli, despite being listed clusters by DUSIB, the central government’s agencies misled the court and bulldozed the homes of thousands of people in these slum settlement areas, rendering them homeless. “I received information that a similar notice has been issued today to demolish a slum settlement area in RK Puram,” he said.
The Delhi Minister expressed, “I want to know from the LG whether all these matters are not under your knowledge. Now, the LG will say that the AAP is lying, I had no information about this matter. LG is the chairman of DDA, and if he is not aware of these things, then he should immediately suspend the chief engineer of DDA for this illegal act and provide evidence to the people of Delhi that whatever actions were taken in various parts of Delhi, he was not aware of them, and he has removed those officials from their positions who were involved in this illegal activity.”
Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj shared that it’s possible that while shirking responsibility, the LG may say that this is not his order, it’s the order of NGT. “If this is the order of NGT, then let the Governor clarify whether his DDA opposed this order in NGT to save these Hindu refugees. Did the DDA under the Lieutenant Governor’s jurisdiction go to the Supreme Court against this order? If they opposed, then show the evidence, and if not, the LG should tell the lakhs of people of Delhi why he didn’t take any steps to save their homes?” He added.
The Senior AAP leader continued, “I have seen videos of these people who left everything behind in Pakistan – their home, livelihood, land, property – and came to seek refuge in India in 2011. They say that they have small children, their children study in nearby schools, board exams of children are underway, and there are many people employed in nearby areas. LG should tell where these people will go if their homes are demolished.”
“LG, who goes around inspecting the work of the Delhi government every day, what illegal activities are happening under his own jurisdiction, he should also take the trouble to know about it. Today, the people of Delhi and the entire country want to know from the LG why the DDA under his jurisdiction conspired to demolish the homes of these thousands of people in Delhi?” Shri Saurabh Bharadwaj concluded.
