AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal challenged Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday, saying he would not run in the Delhi elections unless the BJP dropped its slum demolition cases and promised in court that all displaced people would be rehabilitated on the land they were forced to leave within 24 hours. His statement comes a day after the BJP leader, addressing a ‘Jhuggi Basti Pradhan Sammelan’, called upon slum dwellers “to liberate Dilli from this aapda (disaster)”. “Throwing out AAP is the only way to ensure the welfare of slum dwellers of Delhi,” Shah said.
Kejriwal, accompanied by MLA and former minister Satyendar Jain, stood outside the Railway Jhuggi Camp in the Shakur Basti constituency and referred to himself as the “protector of slums and slum residents.” He also claimed that the BJP only pays attention to slum inhabitants during election campaigns. “We saw recently how BJP leaders spend a night in different slums. Why now? Why didn’t you come here to sleep at night 10 years ago? All this jhuggi tourism is nothing but drama to get votes. The BJP is a party of rich people. They think of jhuggi people as keeda makoda (insects). Do you think they are spending time here because they love jhuggi residents? No, they are showing love because they want votes from you,” he said.
Attacking Shah, Kejriwal said, “In an event yesterday, Shah called people from several jhuggis and abused me. The BJP says jahan jhuggi wahan makan. We also believe in this scheme. But jahan jhuggi wahan kiska makan? Jhuggi walon ke liye? Nahi. Jahan jhuggi wahan inke dost ka makan, builders ka makan. Everyone knows who they are.” “Withdraw all the cases you have filed against the people of jhuggis, and submit an affidavit in court that you will give houses to all those people on the same land where they lived earlier… I will not contest the elections. I give you this challenge, accept it. Otherwise, Kejriwal will not go anywhere, but will fight the elections, win and stand for the slum people like a shield and will not let you demolish their houses,” he said.
Citing how the Lieutenant Governor altered the land use of the Shakur Basti slum area to allow demolitions on December 27 of last year, the AAP convenor went on to say that the BJP would give land priority over slum-dwellers following the elections.
Additionally, he charged that in September, the Railways had put out a tender to remove the railway camp slum. “At this railway camp, people think they will get a house under the ‘Jahan Jhuggi Wahan Makan’ scheme, while the BJP already had a detailed plan to clear this area three months ago. If you vote for them and make them win, they will make you homeless in no less than two months,” Kejriwal warned.
Hitting out Kejriwal later in the day, Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena called his statement a complete lie. Citing the DDA meeting of December 27 last year, he said, “The DDA has neither changed the land use of this colony nor given any eviction or demolition notice. Kejriwal is deliberately telling a blatant lie and misleading the people… Kejriwal ji’s two MLAs were at the DDA meeting on 27 December. If Kejriwal ji had spoken to them (AAP MLAs), perhaps he would not have lied. My advice to him is to stop lying on this subject with immediate effect. Otherwise, DDA will take action against them…”
Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva retaliated against the AAP, claiming that Kejriwal has done nothing to turn slum clusters into model settlements or raise the standard of living for the locals over the past ten years by allowing 50,000 apartments constructed under the Rajiv Awas Yojana in places like Narela to fall into ruin without giving any of the apartments to any slum dwellers. “The last 10 years bear witness to the fact that Arvind Kejriwal can only provoke people but cannot improve their lives. You have been in power for over a decade. Please explain what your government, DUSIB, or any other department has done for the better rehabilitation of slum dwellers…,” said Sachdeva. The BJP also promised that every homeless person in Delhi will get a house under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.
