NEW DELHI: The Congress party and the Delhi Government were once again pitted in a direct confrontation on Saturday with the party announcing its resolve to oppose the Delhi Jal Board Amendment Bill that is slated for passage on Monday in the Assembly. Terming it as draconian, anti-people and a black law, the Congress asked the Sheila Dikshit Government to either withdraw the Bill or send it to a Select Committee of the House or face the opposition of the party MLAs.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit is the Chairperson of the Delhi Jal Board.

Addressing a press conference at the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee office, party MLA Mukesh Sharma said his colleagues had resolved to oppose the Bill as it is not only amounted to imposing a huge financial burden on the people but also an attack on their rights. The provisions of the Bill are draconian and it seems to have been framed at the behest of certain bureaucrats who continue to serve the interests of the BJP in the Congress Government, he alleged. The very fact that Mr. Sharma spoke from the party platform indicated that things had come head on between the party and the Government.

Another senior leader, Pervez Hashmi, declared that the MLAs would oppose passage of the Bill and not allow such a law to take shape that went against the spirit of the commitment given by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to protect the interests of the common citizens, particularly the farmers.

Mr. Sharma said the decision to impose tax on lakhs of people who depend on hand pumps and ground water was unacceptable. What is even more shocking is that water drawn by the farmers from the tube wells would also be taxed and this was against the ideals of the Congress party. Stating that the Delhi Jal Board had failed to ensure proper supply of water to large parts of the Capital, Mr. Sharma said there were still areas that did not receive Jal Board water supply and had to depend on ground water for their survival. He said the provision that Jal Board officials could barge into the house of any individual to check the use of ground water was grossly anti-people and would be opposed inside the House.

Instead of empowering the people of Delhi, the Government was bent on giving limitless powers to the officials and this was unacceptable to the citizens' elected representatives, he charged.

Asked if the party had signalled a new phase in its confrontation with the Government, Mr. Sharma said all the issues had been discussed with senior party leaders and DPCC president Ram Babu Sharma who had given their approval for this action and resolved not to allow such anti-people measures to take shape.

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