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Betrayal is the Hallmark of Kejriwal, Dr Harsh Vardhan exposes “white lies” of Congress & AAP

New Delhi, 13th September.  Addressing a press conference at the Delhi yesterday BJP Office, Union Health Minister and MP from Delhi, Dr Harsh Vardhan, today lashed out against the previous Delhi governments of Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on the issue of regularization of unauthorized colonies of Delhi. On this occasion, Dr Vardhan was joined by Delhi state BJP President Shri Manoj Tiwari, former Union Minister Shri Vijay Goel, MPs Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Shri Ramesh Bidhuri, Shri Pravesh Verma, Shri Gautam Gambhir, Shri Hansraj Hans, Media Incharge Shri Pratyush Kanth, Media Head Shri Ashok Goel Devraha.Dr. Harsh Vardhan said both Congress and AAP had belied the trust and faith of the poor people who were living in these unauthorized colonies, by showing them a lollipop each time before the elections and never fulfilling their promise of regularizing these colonies. Dr Harsh Vardhan said the Delhi CM stands fully exposed as “his governance is based on principles of deception and deep-rooted corruption”.

Exposing the lies, trickery and deceit of the Kejriwal Government, Dr Vardhan emphatically stated that AAP had‘cheated the people of Delhi’ and ‘broken the faith and trust placed by the people.’

 Dr Harsh Vardhan alleged that tall promises and false claims were made to innocent public living in these unauthorized colonies just before the last assembly elections only in a bid for electoral gains. Public was misled before the elections just to garner votes, but nothing was done once the AAP came to power.“It is indeed shocking that false claims were made in their Election Manifesto and pre-poll Agenda as well just before the elections, but once they won there was a deafening silence on the lofty promises made.”

 Due to this inaction on the part of the AAP Government in the last five years, Dr Harsh Vardhan said, lakhs of people have no option but to continue to stay in the filth and squalor of these Unauthorized Colonies without even basic amenities like water, power and sanitation.

 Dr Harsh Vardhan said, it was time that the repeated frauds committed by the ‘dubious’ Delhi CM be nailed by the public. “Is it not his responsibility to regularize these colonies?” Dr Vardhan asked.“However, he has not taken any concrete steps to provide succor to the poor people.On the contrary, he has spread misinformation about the process initiated by the Central Government for regularization of the Unauthorized Colonies so that people continue to be deprived of any benefit that could possibly accrue to them.”

 Speaking about how AAP was trying to steal the credit due to the BJP for forming a committee and acting on its recommendations to regularize these unauthorized colonies, Dr Harsh Vardhan said that AAP government had recently issued certain false statements to the press alleging that,“The Modi Government is against the idea of regularizing these Unauthorized Colonies”, and “If the BJP came to power again at the Centre, it would demolish the Unauthorized Colonies.”

 Dr Harsh Vardhan said that the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri, had also requested Arvind Kejriwal to desist from spreading this disinformation campaign and instead concentrate on completing the Total Station Machine (TSM) Survey for identification of boundaries of the Unauthorized Colonies and other proceedings towards regularization.

 “Despite our warning to stop this disinformation campaign, Arvind Kejriwal made a statement on 17thJuly 2019 that the proposal sent by Delhi Cabinet to the Centre in November, 2015 for regularizing the Unauthorized Colonies has been approved by the Central Government. He also claimed that the State Government, with the approval of his Cabinet, has recommended giving ownership rights in Unauthorized Colonies with a cut-off date of 1st January, 2015.”

 Highlighting the inertia on the part of AAP Government, Dr Harsh Vardhan read out Point No. 56of the Poll Manifesto of AAP in 2015 which stated that:

 “We will provide water and sewer lines, electricity, schools and hospitals in a systematic and phased manner. Multi-pronged action to make available these basic necessities is the only way of empowering unauthorized colonies, which is something that has never been attempted by the BJP or the Congress. Within one year of our Government formation, these unauthorized colonies will be regularized and residents will be given ownership rights.”

 The 2008 Regulation which were handed down to the AAP government by the previous Congress Government empowered them to delineate / verify boundaries; constitute the committee for conferring the title of land within two months of coming to power; and, determine the charges / fee for regularization. However, no work has been done by the Kejriwal Government on any of these till date.

Despite assurance given to the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi by the Government of India (which was based on the communication received from the Delhi Government), and repeated requests from Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), the Delhi Government did not finalize the boundaries. Instead, it kept on seeking extension after extension for delineation of the boundaries. In 2017, an extension was sought till 2019 and now again in 2019,a further extension of two years has been sought. Therefore, as per Delhi Government’s own submission, which has been conveyed to the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi, delineation cannot be completed until December 2021.

 To take an informed decision on Regularization of Unauthorized Colonies and to remove the bottlenecks in the process, MoHUA requested certain information from the Delhi Government in September, 2016 vide two separate letters. In spite of all efforts and repeated requests, the said information has not been provided by the Kejriwal Government till date.

 After continuous follow up with the Delhi Government and with no action in sight from the Delhi Government’s side, the Government of India, suo moto constituted a Committee in 2019 under the chairmanship of Hon’ble LG, Delhi to recommend the process of conferring/recognizing the ownership and/or mortgage/transfer rights to the Residents of Unauthorized Colonies.

 Dr Harsh Vardhan said that it was not just the AAP government which was misleading innocent poor people of Delhi. Even the Congress Government (2007-13) had failed miserably in regularizing the Unauthorized Colonies. They too didn’t delineate/verify boundaries; or constitute the committee for conferring the title of land; or determine the charges/fee for regularization.

 In fact, in 2008, as part of the amended regulations, the Congress Government issued ‘Provisional Regularization Certificates’. However, their sole aim was to get political mileage. These certificates were distributed in 1218 Unauthorized Colonies by politicians of the then ruling party by organizing grand functions and camps just before the 2008 assembly elections. However, these Certificates did not provide any benefit/advantage to the residents of the Unauthorized Colonies. After the conclusion of the assembly elections in 2008, no further steps were taken by the then Delhi Government in the direction of regularization and conferment of rights.

 Again, between 2008 and 2012, no concrete steps were taken by the Congress Government to implement the Regulations and for regularizing the Unauthorized Colonies. Once again, in 2013, just before the upcoming election, another push was given to the process. In June 2012, at the request of the Delhi Government, Clauses 5.3 and 5.4 of the Regulations were amended.

 The following are the amended Clauses –

 Clause 5.3 noted thatGNCTD will finalize the boundaries of each identified colony having more than 50% built up area, by superimposing the satellite/ aerial survey as obtained in 2007 on the layout plan submitted by the resident society. In case boundary happens to run along any physical feature such as drains, roads, railway lines, nallahs and bye-lanes as interpreted in the satellites images, then the boundaries shall be fixed along the above mentioned physical feature.”

 And according to Clause 5.4:After fixing the boundaries on layout plan as in para 5.3, GNCTD will forward the layout plans to Local Body. Simultaneously, GNCTD will issue orders regularizing the colony as per the boundaries fixed after recovery of cost of land on behalf of land owing agency in respect of colonies on public land to be credited to the account of land owing agency. Thereafter, DDA will affect change in land use and local body concerned shall approve the Layout Plan. Development charges as determined will be collected by Local Body concerned from the Resident Societies/individuals.”

 The truth however is that these amendments were made purposefully to gain political mileage just before the elections. The process was to be completed before issuing the regularization order. By virtue of these amendments, the same was reversed to enable the Delhi Government to issue regularization order first, and complete the formalities thereafter.

 Again, in September 2012,few months prior to the Assembly Elections of 2013, the Delhi Government issued Orders of Regularization of 895 Unauthorized Colonies, including 312 on private land and 583 partly or fully on public land. As per these orders, to complete the process, cost of public land was to be recovered and boundaries of Unauthorized Colonies were to be finalized by the GNCTD later. However, no concrete steps were taken by the then Delhi Government in this regard and residents of these Unauthorized Colonies did not get any benefits of such orders of regularization as no ownership rights were recognized/conferred to the residents of such Unauthorized Colonies. Thus, it is clear that in this case too, the general public has been misled and the said amendments were made purposefully, just to issue such orders of regularization to gain political mileage.

 These facts have amply exposed the deceitful ways in which the Kejriwal Government,and the Congress Government prior to that, have been pulling wool over the eyes of the Delhi people, by using them as mere vote bank.

 “All facts stated above show a systematic cheating by the party currently in power in Delhi”, Dr Harsh Vardhan said. Talking specifically about AAP Government, he said that the AAP Government had all the authority given by the Central Government under 2008 Regulations to constitute Committee, get the land titles decided as per norms set by the Committee and approved by the Government but this Committee was not even set up. He questioned, how long can one befool public? No action so far has been taken in even those 895 Unauthorized Colonies where provisional regularization was done by the Congress Government under the authority given by amended Regulations. It was shocking to see that even in 312 colonies which were claimed to be fully on private lands, no action has been taken.

 False promises and public posturing with no action does not augur well in the current scenario with aware public and critical media ready to scrutinize all actions of the government.

 Dr Harsh Vardhan cautioned Delhi citizens not to get carried away by misleading promises and campaigns by AAP that glorify Arvind Kejriwal. Calling him an anarchist and a political opportunist, the Union Minister said Kejriwal has a chameleon-like character with an unstable behavior.

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