Sealing drive dominates agenda on Day 1 in Delhi Assembly

Delhi Assembly's winter session today began on a stormy note as the Aam Aadmi Party alleged the BJP was "extorting" money from traders through the sealing drive launched by the saffron party-controlled civic bodies.
After opposition members demanded a discussion on the ongoing drive in Delhi, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia alleged that the BJP has cheated traders as the BJP-controlled MCDs delayed notifying 351 roads for mixed land use.
A decision to notify the roads has been pending since 2007. If the 351 roads are notified for mixed land use, commercial activities will be legal, which will effectively shield traders operating on these stretches from sealing.

As the three-day winter session began, AAP and BJP legislators traded barbs and indulged in sloganeering, forcing four adjournments through the day.
Two opposition legislators - Vijender Gupta and Manjinder Singh Sirsa - were even marshalled out of the House.
Speaker Ram Niwas Goel later requested the two members in their absence to attend the discussion if they so desired.

"When the issues of sealing drive and 351 roads are raised, the BJP doesn't have answers to all these. The BJP is (supporting) the sealing drive to extort money. The issue of 351 roads has been pending since 2007, but the BJP did nothing for traders. They do not want to see business flourish," Sisodia said.

He said a discussion would be held on notifying the 351 roads, adding the BJP deliberately did not resolve the issue.
Participating in the discussion, AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj urged the Speaker to summon all three municipal commissioners.
"BJP is extorting money from traders. Conversion charges - ranging from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 40 lakh - is being levied on traders," Bhardwaj said.
"They (civic bodies) have been levying conversion charges on traders since 2006. There are some reports that municipal corporations have collected conversion charges of around Rs 1,000 crore."
Despite this, Bhardwaj said, the civic bodies have not reduced conversion charges.

"If they don't have any answer, they should be asked to submit a plan within 15 days on how they would spend that money," he said.
Other AAP MLAs Alka Lamba, Anil Bajpayee, Madan Lal and Vishesh Ravi also attacked the BJP on the sealing drive.