Cops open up Delhi-meerut e-way only to close it again in few hours
GHAZIABAD: The Delhi Police on Tuesday opened up one lane of the heavily barricaded Delhimeerut Expressway (DME) on the Delhi-ghaziabad side, only to shut it once again within a couple of hours.
All the 14 lanes of the DME have been blocked by Delhi Police ever since January 26, when violence broke out between protesting farmers and police personnel. Thousands of commuters travelling from Delhi to Ghaziabad are required to follow diversions or take up alternate routes. Even the side road from Ghazipur to Vaishali in Ghaziabad is heavily barricaded by the police.
“My friends and I were overjoyed when we heard that Delhi-ghaziabad lane was opened up. Couple of hours later, we heard that it was blocked again. Thousands of commuters from Indirapuram, Vaishali, Vasundhara and nearby areas are facing a tough time during peak
hours as they are forced to follow alternate routes. This is nothing short of harassment for the common man,” said Kuldeep Saxena, resident of Indirapuram, who travels daily to his office at Katwariya Sarai in South Delhi.
“If commuters use alternate routes via Kaushambi, they get stuck in long traffic jams. Many are now following the canal road which leads them to Ghazipur. However, commuters
are required to travel through areas near the filthy Ghazipur landfill site,” Saxena added.
“These routes must be opened immediately. Even if one has to go to Connaught Place in Delhi, it takes about one to one-and-a-half hours as opposed to 20-25 minutes via the expressway,” said BK Pandey, a resident of Sector 5, Vaishali.
The Ghaziabad police officials said that they have no role in closing down the expressway as the barricading was put up by the Delhi police. “They opened one of the lanes on late Monday night and commuters used it on Tuesday morning to travel to Ghaziabad. However, they closed the lane again on Tuesday afternoon,” said Gyanendra Singh, superintendent of police (City 2).
Senior Delhi Police officers who did not want to be named said that no official order was issued to open up the border. The opening up of the border on Tuesday was only a temporary arrangement to facilitate the movement of emergency vehicles.
“We had been facilitating the movement of ambulances earlier as well. The movement of vehicles was restored for a few hours in the morning as some emergency vehicles were stuck in the jam. The route has been closed again because there is no official order to open up the border,” said a Delhi Police officer, requesting anonymity.
The protesting farmers, on the other hand, said that they have no issues if the Delhi Police decides to remove the barricades. “Our protest is being carried out only on one lane of the Ghaziabad-delhi carriageway while the rest of the expressway is not occupied. If they want, they can open up the lanes. We also demand that the unoccupied lanes should be opened up for commuters who are facing issues,” said Jagtar Singh Bajwa, farmer leader and member of UP Gate farmers’ committee.
The National Highways Authority of INDIA(NHAI) officials said that due to closure of the border, their pending works for the DME have been held up or delayed, despite the completion date of March 31 approaching fast. “Once the protest site gets cleared, we will make the assessment of damage caused to the new expressway,” said Mudit Garg, project director of NHAI.
NEW DELHI: With just a week left for him to retire, suspended Delhi University vice-chancellor Yogesh Tyagi on Tuesday wrote to President Ram Nath Kovind that the inquiry against him over alleged dereliction of duty was not as per norms, and that his suspension should be revoked.
In the letter written more than 120 days after he was suspended in October last year, Tyagi, whose tenure ends on March 9, has claimed that some “elements” in the ministry were encouraging certain “extra constitutional” persons to clamour for his removal on “flimsy grounds”.
Education ministry officials said they have received no communication in this regard.
He was suspended in October on the order of President Kovind, who is also the Visitor to the university. Kovind had also directed an inquiry against him over allegations of dereliction of duty. Tyagi happens to be the first V-C in the university’s history to face such action.
Prior to his suspension, Tyagi was on leave for medical treatment.
Raj Kumar Bhatia, who is the Chancellor’s nominee in the varsity’s Executive Council -- the highest decision making body of the university -- has also written to the inquiry committee, terming Tyagi’s suspension illegal and recommending it be revoked.
In his letter to the president, Tyagi said, “Ministry officials have grossly failed to place before you the various provisions of the Delhi University Act, statutes, ordinances and regulations in their legal (and I would plead as well moral) perspective as far as they pertain to the role and responsibility of the vicechancellor personally. Also some crucial provisions of the Act, statutes and ordinances have been all together overlooked.”
Tyagi said that since a vicechancellor is not a civil servant and does not enjoy any statutory security of service, action against him cannot be taken as per civil service rules.
“The inquiry ordered against the vice-chancellor by invoking Section 7-A of the Delhi University Act is not in accordance with law. A close perusal of the Section 7-A would reveal that the inquiry prescribed under it is curative in nature. The vicechancellor is expected to be in correspondence with the Visitor. He is not kept away from the university by the mechanism of suspension under presumption of guilt,” Tyagi wrote in the letter.
Expressing anguish over the turn of events, Tyagi said, “Irrespective of the outcome of the inquiry, I would have no interest left in serving the great university if I am vindicated.”
“I am prepared to put my papers if that brings some good and save the energy of everyone to be devoted to the better cause of this great premier university, especially in its centenary year.”
He requested the president to hold an inquiry in accordance with the Delhi University Act, 1922 into the affairs of the university and events that unfolded during the period of his illness and thereafter till his suspension.
“I would also beseech you to revoke my suspension and reinstate me at the earliest possible,” he said.
Tyagi’s suspension came against the backdrop of a power tussle in the central university. A controversy erupted when Tyagi, who was then on medical leave, removed PC Joshi as pro-vc and appointed Geeta Bhatt in his place. Joshi had, meanwhile, notified the appointment of a new registrar, Vikas Gupta, whose appointment was cleared by the executive council.
However, the same day, Tyagi notified the appointment of P C Jha as acting registrar. The ministry then intervened, saying all appointments notified by Tyagi were not “valid” as he was on medical leave.
The power tussle intensified with Jha writing to the ministry citing himself as acting registrar, and saying that all decisions taken by Tygai were in accordance with university norms. The ministry took objection to the letter and directed the university to take strict action against him.