Venkaiah Naidu accuses Ajit Singh of politicizing eviction notice

Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu on Friday criticized Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Ajit Singh over his demand that his bungalow should be converted into a memorial in honour of his father and former prime minister Chaudhary Charan Singh.

He alleged that an attempt was being made to politicize the issue and asked as to why the former Congress-led UPA regime did not initiate any step in this regard earlier.

"We have been in power for just three months, before Ajit Singh was a Union Minister himself. Today those who are giving us advice, they have ruled the country for almost 50 years, and also for the last ten years. During this time, they never took interest in this issue, nor did they do anything," Naidu told media persons here.

"It has been 37 years since Chaudhary Charan Singh passed away. It is wrong to make politically charged statements at our government now, which has been in power just for three months. Nobody would accept doing this in the name of Chaudhary Charan Singh," he added.

The RLD chief Ajit Singh earlier today justified his demand and said that there should be a memorial of his father as there are memorials in honour of several other leaders like Babu Jagjivan Ram and Lal Bahadur Shastri.

The New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) had earlier issued Ajit Singh an eviction notice to vacate the government bungalow in which he has been staying from the past 36 years after former prime minister Choudhary Charan Singh passed away.

After he failed to vacate the bungalow, the NDMC disconnected the water and power supply to the government bungalow giving the reason as overstaying.

In retaliation, Singh's supporters, mainly farmers, took to the streets in protest.

Earlier on Thursday, the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) activists along with RLD supporters marched towards the Gangnahar Muradnagar regulator in an attempted to cut off water supply to the national capital, but were prevented by the police who had to resort to baton charge and the use of water cannons to disperse the protestors.