Cong stir against BJP, AAP next week

The Delhi Congress will hit the streets on Monday in protest against the non- payment of salaries to the employees of three BJP- run municipal corporations in the national capital. A large number of party supporters will hold protests in all the municipal zones from 9 am till 12 noon.

To make the protests a huge success, the Delhi unit of the Congress party has been convening a series of meetings with its local leaders. On Friday, Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken held a meeting with the leaders of the North East, Chandni Chowk and East Delhi parliamentary constituencies. Prominent leaders who attended the meetings included former MP J. P. Aggarwal, former city minister Narender Nath and former MLAs Talwinder Singh Marwah, Prahlad Singh Sawhney and Mateen Ahmed. Former MP Sandeep Dikshit, former city ministers A. K. Walia and Haroon Yusuf and former MLA Hassan Ahmed were conspicuous by their absence.

Mr Maken said his party would soon come out with a “chargesheet” on the functioning of the municipal bodies. He said the Congress party’s main demand was that the municipal bodies should immediately release the salaries of their employees and pensions to widows and physically- challenged in the city. He said pensions to about two lakh people have not been paid by the municipal bodies for a long time.

Mr Maken claimed that the Delhi government had released ` 3,128 crore to corporations in 2012- 13. He criticised Union finance minister Arun Jaitley for reducing the city’s budget by ` 651 crore. He also criticised city’s deputy CM Manish Sisodia for further reducing the Delhi budget by ` 62 crore. He said he was surprised at the way Mr Sisodia had reduced ` 2,000 crore in the planned budget during his recent vote on account. He claimed that both the BJP and the AAP were responsible for the financial mess of the municipal bodies.

Launching a scathing attack on the MCDs for not meeting the parameters set by the Centre in allocating work to safai karamcharis, Mr Maken said one such employee was required to look after 30,000 square feet area. “But the municipal bodies have kept one safai karamchari for 1.25 lakh square feet area.” He demanded that all the safai karamcharis should be regularised on priority so that the city does not suffer further.