The Hindu : New Delhi News : Gujjar-dominated areas ignored, says Bidhuri

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Nov 10, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Gujjar-dominated areas ignored, says Bidhuri

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, NOV. 9. The veteran Gujjar leader and Nationalist Congress Party MLA from Badarpur, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, today strongly objected to the Rural Development Board's alleged move not to include all villages of the trans-Yamuna area in its development plans. He also accused the Board of failure to allocate `even a single penny' to the Gujjar-dominated villages of Badarpur, Tughlakabad and Mehrauli Assembly constituencies.

Addressing a press conference here soon after the first meeting of the re-constituted Rural Development Board, Mr.Bidhuri, who is himself a member of the Board, said whereas Rs. 100 crores had been earmarked for the development of rural villages in Delhi during 2004-05, villages of the trans-Yamuna area and those dominated by the Gujjar community had been "deliberately'' ignored for political reasons as the Board was headed by the Jat leader and Member of Parliament from Outer Delhi, Sajjan Kumar.

Making a direct reference to Mr. Kumar, the Badarpur MLA stated that the majority of funds were being directed towards the Jat dominated villages and areas in rural Delhi. However, he was appreciative of the Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit, who immediately ordered correction of any such anomaly if it had taken place. Stating that it was a direct case of caste and community discrimination, Mr. Bidhuri said Gujjars, Aheers, Rajputs, Tyagis, Sikhs and Muslims mainly dominate the villages not included. Mr. Bidhuri objected to the Board for not sanctioning a single penny for the approved development schemes for the five rural villages in his Badarpur constituency. Mr. Bidhuri said he had lodged a strong protest with the Chief Minister on this issue that he had three meetings with the Food and Supplies Minister, Raj Kumar Chauhan, with regard to the development related problems of these five villages when development projects were approved for these villages.

He said as per the agenda papers for the Board meeting that was to be held on September 1, 2004, which was postponed later, the Board had sanctioned Rs. 89.84 lakhs for the development of these villages of Badarpur constituency. He said he was expecting some increase in this amount in view of the new works to be done in these villages in this meeting. However, the Board has not sanctioned any money this time. This move of the Board had caused strong resentment among the residents of these villages. He demanded that all rural villages of the trans-Yamuna area should be included in the agenda of the Board and the villages of Tughlakabad, Badarpur and Mehrauli constituencies should be immediately given adequate funds for development schemes. He deplored the mentality of certain people to divide people along caste lines and said this would only harm the interests of the Congress party.

Meanwhile, a spokesman of the Food and Supplies Minister stated that the Rural Development Board had sanctioned no scheme nor had any villages been left out deliberately. He said that the Development Commissioner, G.K. Marwah, had conceded that there had been some administrative errors due to which the previous schemes were not included in the agenda this time and assured that things would fall in place at the next meeting.

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