BJP manifesto old wine in new bottle: Chandigarh Congress candidate Manish Tewari

Chandigarh, May 27

Congress candidate Manish Tewari today disputed claims made by the BJP in its manifesto. He said, “It is a classic case of old wine in a new bottle, as the manifesto is a repackaging of unfulfilled promises only.”

Tewari said since the BJP was in power for 10 years, the party, along with the manifesto, should have released a balance sheet for that period, which obviously it could not, as it has nothing to show.

He interacted with reporters during his “padyatra” in the Butrela area. Replying to a question on the BJP’s manifesto, he said much before he could comment, it had already been rejected by people of Chandigarh, who had raised questions on unfulfilled promises repeated in the “Sankalp Patra”.

He said the BJP had promised mono rail in Chandigarh in its 2019 manifesto. Neither was there any progress on the proposed mono rail project nor on Metro, said Tewari, adding that the city’s roads remain clogged with heavy traffic.

He said the BJP had promised to regularise the need-based changes made in the units allotted by the CHB. On the contrary, the Housing Board issued notices for even small changes carried out by owners, imposed penalties running into lakhs of rupees, sent bulldozers to raze houses and even evicted poor people from their homes.

Tewari also referred to the BJP’s promise of giving ownership rights on the basis of general power of attorney. As usual, this promise also remained on paper only, he said.

On the BJP’s promise of providing 24-hour water supply in the city, he said the same promise was made in 2019 also. Not only the promise remains unfulfilled but the tariff has also been increased.

The Congress candidate said the BJP had again promised that it would remove the Dadu Majra garbage dump. The same promise featured in the 2019 manifesto also. If they could not do anything in five years, what people could expect of them in another five years, which they were not getting in any way, he added.

Similarly, he talked of the issues of parking, public transport system and additional floors on booths. The truth is the then city BJP president Tandon and MP Kirron Kher simply forgot their promises made with regard to the booths and other commercial buildings.

The BJP had promised to extend the “lal dora” in villages, regularise houses built outside it and to abolish the Periphery Act. This promise also remained unfulfilled, he added.