The Hindu : New Delhi News : MLAs seek L-G's intervention

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Apr 11, 2006

New Delhi

New Delhi

MLAs seek L-G's intervention

Staff Reporter

Another group of legislators announces relay hunger strike on sealing issue

A LIST OF DEMANDS: A group of MLAs led by Mukesh Sharma handing over a memorandum to Lieutenant Governor B.L.Joshi at Raj Bhawan in New Delhi on Monday. — Photo: R.V. Moorthy.

NEW DELHI: Congress MLAs from the Outer Delhi parliamentary constituency on Monday met Lieutenant-Governor B. L. Joshi and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit demanding that the ongoing sealing and demolition exercise in the Capital be stopped immediately.

Meanwhile, another group of party MLAs, mostly loyalists of Chief Minister, led by former Minister Pervez Hashmi and former DPCC president Subhash Chopra accused the Central Government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi of not cooperating with the Sheila Government, a situation that had led to the present mess. They warned of an agitation against the MCD and the Union Government if they did not come out with decisive action to put an end to the sealing exercise going on in the Capital.

They announced a relay hunger strike from April 14 in support of their demands.

In their memorandum submitted to Mr. Joshi, the Outer Delhi MLAs -- Mukesh Sharma, S. C. Vats, Mahabal Mishra, Surinder Kumar, Anil Bhardwaj, Vijay Singh Lochav, Malaram Gangwal and Bijender Singh -- urged him to intervene in the matter. The MLAs said the entire situation should be viewed from a humanitarian angle, as lakhs of people would face displacement and hunger leading to a law and order situation.

They said a conspiracy was being hatched to ensure mass migration from Delhi.

Stating that nothing short of an Ordinance was the solution to the problem, the MLAs urged the Lieutenant-Governor to declare all those roads with more than 50 per cent business establishments as commercial areas that would save lakhs from being rendered homeless and unemployed. They also urged Mr. Joshi to give special permission to allow commercial activities in villages.

At the same time, the MLAs sought an assurance from the Lieutenant-Governor that before the Master Plan for Delhi-2021 was finalised, views of the MLAs should be taken on record.

Mr. Joshi purportedly assured the MLAs that he would look into their demands sympathetically and said directions would be issued to the Delhi Development Authority to hold consultations with the MLAs before finalising the new Master Plan for Delhi.

Later, the MLAs also met Ms. Dikshit and said unless steps were taken to control the situation things could well go out of control. Either the Government should come out with an Ordinance or approach the Supreme Court, they stated.

Meanwhile, Mr. Hashmi accused the MCD and the Centre of not presenting the correct facts before the courts that had led to the present turmoil. Stating that Corporation and Centre should seek relief from the court, Mr. Hashmi said it was the people who elected MLAs and Governments and not the other way. "We will stand with the people of Delhi as MLAs are for the people and not the Government. A mixed land use policy should be presented before the court as we are sure the court will grant relief,'' Mr. Hashmi added.

Demanding that DDA be brought under the control of the Delhi Government, Mr. Hashmi said that for the mistakes of successive administrations in the Capital, the poor and the middle class were being made to suffer.

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