Union Minister Smriti Irani on Friday launched a scathing attack on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal after he expressed disappointment over the delay in municipal corporation polls in the national capital territory. Irani alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi had deprived the civic body of Rs 13000 crores.
Speaking to the media, the union minister stated, “Today Kejriwal held a presser. I want to ask him… Does he know that Nagar Nigam had sought reforms last year? Delhi govt has purposely deprived MCD employees of Rs 13000 crores. Kejriwal chooses to starve the funds of Nagar Nigam.”
Irani demanded that Kejriwal should immediately deposit Rs 13,000 crore in the bank account of the municipal corporation. She further alleged that Kejriwal stopped funds for sanitation workers and parks maintenance in Delhi.
Taking a jibe at the Delhi CM, the union minister said, “A leader who gets less votes than NOTA in UP, lost deposit on 55/70 seats in Uttarakhand claims there’s AAP wave.”
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to let the MCD elections take place. The Delhi CM said that deferring the MCD polls weakens the democratic system. On Wednesday, the Delhi State Election Commission deferred the announcement of dates for the municipal corporation polls. The announcement was reportedly postponed after the election commission received a communication from the central government.
State Election Commissioner SK Srivastava said that the central government raised a few issues that are yet to be legally examined by the Commission. Srivastava added that the Centre was planning to introduce a bill in the Parliament’s budget session to unify the three municipal corporations – south, north, and east – of Delhi. The Centre’s move drew sharp criticism from the Kejriwal-led party.
