Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's visit to the demolition site in West Delhi's Shakurbasti area drew mixed reactions from the slum dwellers on Monday.
As soon as Mr. Gandhi reached the site, which was demolished by the Railways, at 11:40 am, hundreds gathered around him. Some wanted solutions to their problems, while others just wanted to get a glimpse of the politician.
Mr. Gandhi assured the victims of eviction drive that he would raise the issue in the Parliament.
"I won't let demolition happen anywhere in the city. Whenever, any such thing happens, call Rahul Gandhi. Congress is not in power both in Centre and in Delhi, yet I am with you all in this battle," he said while interacting with the dwellers.
The Congress vice president also slammed Narendra Modi-led NDA government and Arvind Kejriwal's AAP government. "Modi sarkar & Kejriwal sarkar are responsible for what has happened. But now they are busy blaming each other. Instead they should provide help to the people who have been displaced & rehabilitate them," he tweeted.
Within an hour of Mr. Gandhi’s statement, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called him a ‘kid’. “Rahul Gandhi is a kid. Perhaps the Congress Party did not tell him that the Railway comes under the ambit of the central government,” Mr Kejriwal tweeted. AAP members said that Mr. Gandhi took 48 hours to react to the demolition drive and only when “he saw a political opportunity in it.”
Meanwhile, AAP MPs staged a protest at the Parliament against the demolition. Parliamentarians of the Trinamool Congress also joined AAP in the protest.
