Delhi Assembly winter session: AAP MLAs spar with opposition over sealing drive
Hindustan Times 2018-01-16 00:44:00
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Soon after the House was convened, the ruling AAP MLAs rushed into the well of the House, demanding a discussion on the drive against properties that allegedly violate municipal norms. (Sonu Mehta/HT PHOTO)
    Day One of the Delhi Assembly’s winter session was mired in disruptions as Aam Aadmi Party legislators and the Opposition sparred over the ongoing sealing drive in the city. Marshals had to be called in to take the Opposition BJP MLAs out of the House.
Soon after the House was convened, the ruling AAP MLAs rushed into the well of the House, demanding a discussion on the drive against properties that allegedly violate municipal norms.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs, on the other hand, raked up the issue of an alleged delay on the government’s part in changing the land use of 351 roads across the national Capital.
The din forced the Speaker Ram Niwas Goel to adjourn the House four times in a span of just two hours.
After the fourth adjournment, when the House resumed at 4:15 pm, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia accused the BJP of “extorting” money from the traders in the name of sealing drives and conversion charge.
“The BJP is running away from a discussion because they have cheated the traders. They are extorting money through sealing drives. They do not want traders to do business,” Sisodia told the House.
Sisodia’s speech was interrupted by the leader of the Opposition Vijender Gupta and his party colleague Manjinder Singh Sirsa. The two BJP members insisted that the issue of 351 roads, which has been pending since 2007, be taken up in the House. This prompted Goel to order that they be escorted out by the marshals.
Summon MCD commissioners
AAP MLA from Greater Kailash Saurabh Bharadwaj urged the Speaker to summon the commissioners and chief accountants of the three municipal corporations in the Assembly on Wednesday. He said that the commissioners should inform the House of how the MCD spent around Rs 1,000 crore that was allegedly collected as conversion charges over the past 12 years.
“Through RTIs it has come to our knowledge that they have diverted this money (collected as conversion charge) in the name of fake loans. A resolution will be tabled tomorrow, if other MLAs agree to the proposal,” Bharadwaj said.
Chandni Chowk MLA Alka Lamba also hit out at the BJP, alleging that it had been collecting conversion charges for over 10 years, but was not issuing receipts to traders.
The Delhi government in 2006 had notified 2,550 roads as commercial or mixed land use but 351 roads were left out.
The AAP government has been blaming the BJP-ruled MCDs, citing “certain deficiencies” on the part of the civic bodies for the delay in notifying the 351 roads.
The discussion will continue on Tuesday with the urban development minister Satyendar Jain likely to reply to the queries of the Opposition.
Opposition protests
After being marshalled out of the House, Gupta displayed a poster which read “AAP, stop drama on sealing drive and notify 351 roads”. He also alleged that AAP was sitting on files related to the notification of roads.
Gupta alleged he was not allowed to speak in the house. “The mike of BJP MLAs was switched off again and again whenever they tried to raise the issue. Ultimately, the speaker forced us out of the House. On the contrary, the Speaker allowed the AAP MLAs to display banners in the House and shout slogans in the well,” he said.