NEW DELHI: A day after Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri tweeted about the Centre’s decision to shift the Rohingya refugees to EWS flats in Delhi and later the Union Home Ministry denied it, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia wrote a letter to the Union Home Minister Amit Shah urging him to order an impartial probe into the matter.
Requesting Shah to make the Centre’s stand clear on the issue, Sisodia asked in his letter on whose instructions, the decision to shift Rohingyas to the flats was taken. Calling it a conspiracy of the Central government, Sisodia said, “The whole plot has been transpired without keeping the chief minister and deputy chief minister of Delhi in a loop. We were kept in the dark about the existence of any such matter or it being taken up by the officials of the Central government and state government with respect to Delhi.”
Further, the deputy chief minister said, “When the relevant documents of this decision of providing permanent residence to Rohingyas were sought, shockingly, it was highlighted that a meeting regarding the issue was held on July 29, under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary. Officials of the Central government and Delhi Police were also present at this meeting."
"Not only this but the file was also sent to the LG for approval of the central government, via the Chief Secretary. This was done without keeping the elected government in the loop, especially the chief minister and deputy chief minister of the state. A letter by FRRO of Delhi Police, currently under the Union Home Ministry, was also found attached where they had requested the allotment of flats to Rohingyas in Delhi.”
According to the deputy chief minister, the Delhi government is against any move to provide any temporary or permanent accommodation to Rohingyas in Delhi. He said, “The stand of the elected government of Delhi in this regard is very clear. Appealing to the Centre, he said that if these steps have been taken without the consent of the Centre, then they should be investigated seriously immediately.”