Date:08/04/2003 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2003/04/08/stories/2003040806850400.htm

Other States - New Delhi

Slum dwellers hold demonstration

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI APRIL 7. Hundreds of residents of Delhi Cantonment under the leadership of the BJP leader and former MLA, Karan Singh Tanwar, today held a demonstration outside the Delhi Assembly protesting against what they described as displacement of people living in slum clusters around Lakkad Mandi and Subzi Mandi in the Mayapuri area at the behest of the sitting Congress MLA, Kiran Chaudhary -- a charge strongly refuted by Ms. Chaudhary.

The protesters also submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit, detailing alleged acts of omission and commission by Ms. Chaudhary, who they said had unleashed a reign of terror in the area and was indulging in anti-poor and anti-people activities. The demonstrators urged strong action against the sitting MLA and demanded that the exercise to remove people from the Lakkad Mandi and Subzi Mandi areas in the constituency be put to an end immediately and the MCD officials be asked to act with restraint.

Mr. Tanwar said that while on the one hand the Chief Minister had stated that her Government would not allow displacement of people living in slum clusters, her own party MLA was doing the opposite and had got around 5,000 people displaced. He said the poor people had been removed despite their having the ration cards and teh bazari challans for the past three decades. He said the Congress was indulging in hollow slogans and was doing lip service for the poor. He warned that if steps were not taken to provide alternative accommodation to the displaced people, he would launch an agitation.

Meanwhile, refuting all allegations, Ms. Chaudhary termed Mr. Tanwar as a `liar' whose only job is to work for the land mafia and propagating the cause of money bags.

Accusing the former BJP MLA of unleashing a series of lies during the past few months to malign her, Ms. Chaudhary challenged him to prove the charges by coming out with evidence in support of his allegations.

Stating that the clearance of area around Lakkad Mandi had been done at the behest of the court orders, Ms. Chaudhary said it was unfortunate that Mr. Tanwar had sought to project an illegal commercial activity at Lakkad Mandi as JJ clusters. The fact is that these shopkeepers had encroached upon government land illegally and had blocked passage of two major colonies.

Referring to the issue of JJ clusters in Mayapuri, Ms. Chaudhary said it was out of sheer frustration that Mr. Tanwar was levelling such baseless charge. He has lost the sympathy of the people living in JJ clusters and now he is trying to regain the hold by indulging in blatant lies.

In fact, she pointed out that she was instrumental in putting on hold demolition of hundreds of clusters in her constituency by the Defence personnel and had raised the issue in the Assembly also.