NEW DELHI: After having drawn flak from her party MLAs for convening a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting to discuss the future of farmhouses and commercial properties in residential areas, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has now put the ball in the United Progressive Alliance Government's court, stating that the Delhi Development Authority and the Urban Development Ministry have to take a decision on the issue.

Ms. Dikshit said her Government would send its recommendations on the issue to the DDA and the Union Urban Development Ministry for regularising all illegal commercial establishments that have come up in residential areas. She also declared that her Government would carry out a survey of such areas and then send the same to the Central Government for further action.

A section of the party, however, is not happy with the way the issue has been handled. "Any decision on what is to be done should have been announced after consulting the Union Government Ministries concerned. But Ms. Dikshit has shifted the onus on the Union Government. This could complicate matters as the issue is already pending before the Supreme Court,'' a senior party leader remarked.

Some Ministers are also upset that the Chief Minister convened a CLP meeting without consulting her ministerial colleagues. One Minister said it was unfortunate that issues like farmhouses were taken up for discussion when people were reeling under power cuts and water crisis in the Capital.

Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Ram Babu Sharma said it would have been better if the Cabinet had deliberated on the issue and then convened a meeting of the CLP. "The CLP is deliberating on matters that do not even fall under the jurisdiction of the Delhi Government. It is unfortunate that more important issues have been ignored. We will not allow the interests of the rich and famous to be served at the cost of the poor people,'' he added.

Similarly, Mr. Sharma and a number of MLAs are also surprised that while no resolution was passed or any decision taken at the CLP on Tuesday, Ms. Dikshit made unilateral announcements on various issues.

Mr. Sharma said he was in favour of working out a solution to prevent dislocation of lakhs of people, but it has to be remembered that the Congress was ruling in the MCD, Delhi and the Centre and everything should be handled with care.

Farmhouse issue

"There was no need to convene a meeting of the CLP in the first place. When we are stating that the courts will decide on the farmhouse issue then the same applies to commercial establishments in residential areas as the Supreme Court is seized of the matter. Instead of holding CLPs, it would be better if the Government represented its case in a proper manner in the courts,'' another MLA stated.

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