NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Malviya Nagar MLA Somnath Bharti on Wednesday accused the BJP and the Congress of jointly orchestrating the demolition of ‘jhuggis’ (slum dwellings) in Indira Camp, Malviya Nagar.
“Today, I present a glaring example of the current state of affairs in Delhi. Since the introduction of the Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana and the Sanjeevani Yojana, both the Congress and BJP have been thrown into utter chaos. Our senior leaders have rightly dubbed the BJP as the ‘Bharatiya Jhootha Party.’ Whatever semblance of composure these parties had was completely shattered with the announcement of the Pujari-Granthi Samman Yojana,” Bharti said.
“On Tuesday, in my constituency’s Indira Camp, a telling incident occurred that exposes the true face of the BJP. The party had previously launched the ‘Jhuggi Prawas Yojana,’ claiming they would live among jhuggi residents to understand their struggles. But, as we predicted, it was all a façade.
Yesterday, the BJP arrived in Indira Camp, initially pretending to show sympathy before sending bulldozers to demolish homes,” the AAP MLA said. He further alleged that when MCD officials arrived to demolish the homes, neither he nor his local councillor were informed in advance.
“What was more surprising was the presence of the Congress’s local candidate at the demolition site. How did he know about it? Upon investigation, it became clear that Congress and BJP were working together in this action. The demolition was carried out by MCD officials, with full knowledge and support from Congress,” Bharti added.
In response, Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor criticised Bharti, claiming the MLA had lost his political relevance. Kapoor reminded that Bharti had been the candidate for the AAP-Congress alliance in the recent Lok Sabha elections from the New Delhi constituency, making his current allegations against Congress contradictory.
Kapoor also asserted that several key AAP leaders, including Bharti, Satyendar Jain, Manish Sisodia, and Arvind Kejriwal, were facing an inevitable defeat in the upcoming assembly elections. He accused them of avoiding discussions on development and governance, instead attempting to distract the public with such controversies.
“The people of Delhi are no longer deceived by their tricks,” Kapoor said.