Date:22/06/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/06/22/stories/2007062257040400.htm

New Delhi

BJP criticises Centre’s move

Staff Reporter

Imposition of heavy parking fee

Party demands withdrawal of proposed new fee
Conversion fee on mixed land use also flayed

NEW DELHI: Senior Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party leaders on Thursday criticised the decision of the Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre to impose a heavy parking fee and conversion fee on mixed land use in Delhi. They also charged that the Congress Government first deliberately hikes the rates and then deceitfully lowers them to earn public sympathy.

Delhi BJP president Harsh Vardhan demanded that the Government immediately withdraw this fee. He wondered how residents of unauthorised, rehabilitation and regularised colonies would pay Rs. 66,500 and above as parking fee.

Asserting that it is the duty of the Government to make arrangements for parking, he said the decision to recover this fees from any trader, service provider or industrialists was not justified.

On the issue of conversion charges, which were slashed by two-thirds by the Centre on Wednesday, Dr. Vardhan said when the Court had allowed people to carry on business in residential areas under mixed land use in 24 categories then why are conversion fee and parking development fee being imposed?”.

Former Union Minister Vijay Goel termed the decision to lower the conversion fee a “cruel joke”’ by the Union Urban Development Minister S. Jaipal Reddy. He appealed to shopkeepers not to pay the excessive parking fee, development charges and conversion fee till the Government explains why it had imposed the high fee in the first place and why has it decided to lower the fee now.

Accusing the Congress of playing petty politics, he said while it had earlier notified the new Master Plan for Delhi-2021 in haste in view of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections, now it had lowered the excessive conversion fees keeping in mind the Delhi Assembly elections in 2008.

“At first the Congress Government deliberately hikes the rates and then it deceitfully lowers them to earn public sympathy,” Mr. Goel charged, adding that it was also strange that the conversion rates had been lowered not as per any the policy but on the plea of the businessmen who had not paid them.