NEW DELHI: Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta has said that bulldozers in the national capital will not stop even after the three municipal corporations cease to exist next week.
In an exclusive interview with IANS, Gupta said that whether it is one corporation or three, the drive will continue to make Delhi free from encroachments even after next week. "Bulldozer will continue to remove encroachments and illegal constructions after unification of the three municipal corporations, " he said.
He pointed out that rolling out the bulldozers is a routine work activity and regularly carried by the municipal corporations across the city but some people are giving a religious colour to it.
"Anti-encroachment drives are not a new thing the municipal corporations are doing. But some people have started seeing the drive against illegal construction and encroachment through a political prism and it is not true. The drives against illegal constructions and encroachments are impartial and not using a pick and choose policy. The AAP and Congress are giving a political colour to the bulldozer, " Gupta said.
When asked why all of a sudden the BJP ruled civic bodies became active against encroachments and illegal constructions, Gupta said that the civic bodies are not becoming active today but the pace of the drive sometimes becomes slow due to different factors which are beyond its control.
"Anti-encroachment drives get slow due lack of adequate security force or resources to carry them out. Today municipal corporations require resources including equipment or bulldozers and security personnel to control people, " Gupta said.
He alleged that the AAP and its lawmakers in Delhi are giving shelter to all the illegal and unlawful activities in the city for their vote bank politics.
"AAP and its MLAs are sheltering illegal and unlawful activities in the city. They promised to act against the tanker and liquor mafia in Delhi but they are standing with AAP. All the illegal activities in the city by Bangladeshis and Rohingyas are given shelter by the AAP for vote bank politics. In Punjab they (AAP) promised to act against the drug mafia but today their government is patronizing people involved in it, " Gupta said.
When asked if municipal councillors are to be blamed for illegal constructions and encroachments, and party ruled corporations failed to act, Gupta said a perception has been built against the elected representatives of corporations but it is not true.
"You can check the minutes of the meetings at the zonal level, all the BJP councillors regularly raised both the issues in the last 15 years. We are committed to make it clean and free from encroachments, " Gupta added.