The anti-encroachment drive carried out in the communal violence-hit Jahangirpuri area by the BJP-ruled North civic body on Wednesday set off a political slugfest in the Capital.
While the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) accused BJP of “engineering hooliganism”, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) retorted that action was being taken in the area against encroachments by people “of all religions”. The Congress questioned the silence of the Chief Minister over the developments in Jahangirpuri.
AAP’s attack
Through a video message, AAP leader Atishi on Wednesday said, “Bulldozers should be run on the BJP headquarters and on the residence of Amit Shah. After this, riots will not happen in this country.”
She added that while the BJP claims violence, riots and hooliganism will be stopped by removing encroachments, “actually, the BJP itself is engineering hooliganism, violence and riots not just in Delhi, but across the country.”
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, in a press conference on Wednesday, demanded that along with the illegal structures being razed in Jahangirpuri, “houses of those BJP leaders should also be demolished under whose reign these illegal structures flourished in the past 15 years”. He asked why BJP-led civic bodies allowed “illegal structures to flourish in the area over the past 15 years in the first place”.
Mr. Sisodia added that the BJP must answer why a huge number of Bangladeshis and Rohingya were allowed to settle across the country over the last eight years. He added that on the basis of the migrants settled in various parts of the country, deliberately by the BJP, “anyone can predict where the next riots will happen.”
AAP leader Amanatullah Khan, who is also the Delhi Waqf Board chairman, attacked the BJP for carrying out the anti-encroachment drive during Ramzan “in an area hit by rioting just four days ago, where tempers are yet to cool down”.
He said the demolition was targeted at properties owned by a particular community in order to harass them.
BJP’s response
Responding to the allegations levelled by the senior AAP leader, State BJP president Adesh Gupta said, “The rioters have no religion and they have to be replied back in their own language. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee allows Bangladeshis to enter India from Bengal and then Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal provides them free food and power and water and shelter.”
Thanking the North civic body for bulldozing unauthorised encroachments in Jahangirpuri, Mr. Gupta said it was the seventh such action taken by the civic body in the area.
“Now is the time for us to identify those who went to the Supreme Court to save these Rohingya and Bangladeshis who have settled in this area. The AAP, Congress and the Opposition are trying to save these rioters who attacked innocent and unarmed Hanuman bhakts with swords and bullets,” he said.
Mr. Gupta had on Tuesday written to the Mayor of the North civic body, Raja Iqbal Singh, urging that “illegal constructions and encroachments by these rioters” be identified and “demolished with bulldozers”.
Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said he failed to understand why political parties were seeing a religious angle in the demolition drive. “The truth is that action against encroachments by people of all religions has been taken,” he said.
Congress’ charge
The Delhi unit of Congress thanked the Supreme Court for stalling the anti-encroachment drive.
It blamed both the BJP and AAP for failing to take steps to bring peace in Jahangirpuri and said the demolition drive would only instigate division among the people on communal and religious lines.
