AAP, BJP spar over law & order, bus marshals in Delhi Assembly
The last full Assembly session before the scheduled elections in Delhi began today with a clash between the AAP and BJP over the reinstatement of bus marshals and the law and order situation in the Capital.
The session started with the BJP MLAs staging a walkout after the Speaker laid the issues to be raised under Rule 280 and declared that there would not be a question hour in the session.
Former Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener, addressing the Assembly, accused the BJP-led Central Government of turning Delhi into a "Gangster Capital".
Gang leaders like Lawrence Bishnoi are operating freely, even from prison, under the Home Minister’s watch, Kejriwal said.
Attacking the Central Government over the rise in extortion calls and two explosions in less than 40 days in the Rohini area, he pointed out that Delhi, being a "half-state", shares responsibilities between the Delhi Government and the Central Government. Kejriwal asserted that ensuring safety and law and order rests on Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
He said that the people of Delhi entrusted the BJP-led central government with the responsibility of ensuring the safety and security of Delhi residents and maintaining law and order. “This responsibility falls directly on the shoulders of the Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, to ensure the safety of every person in Delhi and to keep the city secure.”
Reading out a list of gangster-related crimes that occurred this year in the national capital, the AAP supremo further said, “How is Lawrence Bishnoi’s gang being allowed to wreak havoc in Delhi? Lawrence Bishnoi, lodged in Sabarmati Jail in BJP-ruled Gujarat, is running an extortion racket from there. How is this happening under Amit Shah’s watch?”
Meanwhile on the issue of bus marshals, CM Atishi accused the BJP of indulging in dirty politics at the cost of women’s safety.
“Two weeks ago, the Delhi government sent a proposal to the L-G to regularise bus marshals and retain their deployment in buses until then. However, the LG has not responded to this critical proposal,” she claimed.
However, the Leader of Opposition (LoP) Vijender Gupta critiqued the AAP-led Delhi Government of delaying the L-G’s proposal to deploy the civil defence volunteers on a war-footing to mitigate the deteriorating air quality. He added that it was on the directions of former Delhi CM Kejriwal that bus marshals were removed from service.
In response, Atishi, during her address, challenged the LoP to get the approval of the L-G for the proposal to reinstate bus marshals, if he gets it then she will convince her party to not field a candidate from Rohini — Gupta’s constituency.
“You just get the file for the appointment of marshals signed by the LG, I will convince my party not to field any candidate against you in Rohini, I will also campaign for you,” she said.
Following the walkout by BJP leaders, led by LoP Gupta, he accused the AAP government of getting votes from Rohingya and Bangladeshis, whom he termed “infiltrators”.
He also demanded the implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Delhi. Apart from the NRC, the BJP also demanded that the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) reports of 2017-18 and 2021-22 be tabled in the House, which have been pending for long.
