Page 53 - Aap Government

Delhi Congress slams AAP as monsoon rain brings national capital to halt

The Delhi Congress said the AAP's promises to control waterlogging in the national capital had "fallen flat" as heavy monsoon rain inundated roads and flooded drains on Saturday, creating mayhem in residential and commercial areas of the city. Delhi Congress President Anil Chaudhary hit out at the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi governmnent and Municipal Corporation of Delhi, saying, The promises made by Delhi PWD Minister Atishi and MCD Mayor Shelly Oberoi of making all the preparations to address water logging and traffic jams fall flat. Heavy rains brought the city to a total standstill. Chaudhary claimed that the citizens are troubled due to the monsoon showers despite the AAP promising to address all civic problems prior to the MCD elections. The AAP had promised to address all the civic problems of Delhiites and yet they are troubled due to the monsoon rains. Broken roads brought vehicular traffic to a total halt, stranding people for hours, Chaudhary added. Delhi on Saturday ...

PM Modi takes dig at BRS during Telangana visit, calls KCR govt corrupt

In a veiled dig at the ruling BRS in Telangana and the AAP government in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said it was for the first time that allegations of corruption deal between two political parties and state governments were cropping up. Pacts between two state governments for welfare and development issues like sharing water are common, but it is for the first time that such allegations are levelled against two parties, he said referring to the Delhi excise policy case. While AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Mninister Manish Sisodia has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over the matter, BRS leader and Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao's daughter, K Kavitha, had appeared before the ED for questioning in connection with the case. Addressing a public meeting after laying the foundation stone for various projects worth Rs 6100 crore here, Modi said the BRS government has used up an entire dictionary to shower abuses on the central government a

BJP spreading lies, wants to defame Manish Sisodia, says AAP leader Atishi

Senior AAP leader Atishi on Saturday lashed out at the BJP and the Centre, accusing them of spreading lies about jailed former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and attempting to defame him. This comes a day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said it has attached two immovable assets owned by Sisodia and his wife, apart from bank deposits worth Rs 11.49 lakh, in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. At a press conference here, Atishi alleged that as per an ED document, Sisodia has assets worth Rs 81 lakh. "The BJP is spreading lies about Delhi's former deputy CM Manish Sisodia by telling the media that the ED attached Manish Sisodia's assets amounting to Rs 52 crores in the excise case, whereas the ED document says that Sisodia has total assets of Rs 81 lakh only," she said. The AAP leader further alleged that the BJP is "trying to defame Sisodia" and asserted that her party was "not scared of the Centre and its agencies". "The BJP wants to tarnish the

ED running fake news of attaching Rs 52 cr assets of Sisodia: Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday accused the BJP-led Centre of defaming AAP leader Manish Sisodia by running "fake news" of the Enforcement Directorate attaching assets worth Rs 52 crore belonging to the jailed leader in the Delhi excise policy case. He said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has, in fact, attached properties worth Rs 80 lakh of Sisodia and his wife. The ED on Friday said it has attached two immovable assets of Sisodia and his wife apart from bank deposits worth Rs 11.49 lakh of the ex-deputy chief minister in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. Taking to Twitter, Kejriwal said in Hindi, "Prime Minister, when you did not find anything against Manish Sisodia, you started defaming him through ED. Your ED is running fake news on TV channels saying that Rs 52 crore worth assets of Manish Sisodia have been attached." Kejriwal, who is also the AAP national convener, clarified that in reality, Rs 80 lakh worth of assets have been attached. T

Dinesh Arora worked on behalf of AAP leaders Sisodia, Vijay Nair: ED

Businessman Dinesh Arora, a CBI witness in the Delhi excise policy case, was "one of the main conspirators" in this alleged scam and was working on behalf of AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Vijay Nair, the Enforcement Directorate alleged before a local court on Friday. The federal agency arrested Arora late on Thursday night after prolonged questioning. It produced him before the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court of Judge M K Nagpal on Friday which sent him to ED custody till July 11. "Dinesh Arora is one of the main conspirators in the entire Delhi excise policy scam who was working on behalf of (former Delhi deputy chief minister) Manish Sisodia and (AAP communication in-charge) Vijay Nair. He is a close associate of Manish Sisodia and other prominent AAP leaders. "On the directions of Manish Sisodia, Dinesh Arora connected with Vijay Nair and became part of the Delhi excise scam-related conspiracy and consequent acts of money laundering," the ED alleged while

GST collection in Q1 rose 15%, reflects honest governance: CM Kejriwal

The Delhi government's GST collection rose 15 per cent in the first quarter of the 2023-24 fiscal compared to the year-ago period, with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal saying honest governance leads to increased revenue. According to figures shared by the chief minister on Twitter, the first quarter collections of goods and services tax (GST) in the past five years almost doubled from Rs 4,419.71 crore in 2018-19 to Rs 8,028.91 crore in 2023-24. Kejriwal said the growth meant his government will have more money to spend on building schools, hospitals and infrastructure. "Governments often say they don't have money for making good schools and hospitals. But our government in Delhi has shown that honest governance leads to increased revenue. "Delhi's first quarter GST collection has increased at an impressive 15 per cent from last year. This is how we will have money to build more schools, more hospitals, more infrastructure for the people of Delhi," he tweeted. Finance minister Atis

Excise policy scam: Sisodia moves SC seeking bail in CBI, ED cases

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Manish Sisodia on Thursday moved the Supreme Court seeking bail in the CBI and ED cases arising out of the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. He has moved the apex court challenging the two orders of the Delhi High Court which had dismissed his separate bail petitions in these cases. Sisodia, who also held the excise portfolio among many that he handled as the deputy chief minister of Delhi, was first arrested by the CBI on February 26 for his alleged role in the "scam", and has been in custody since then. He resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28. The high court had on May 30 denied bail to him in the excise policy scam case being probed by the CBI, saying having been the deputy chief minister and excise minister, he is a "high-profile" person who has the potential to influence the witnesses. On July 3, the high court had declined him bail in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the city government's excise policy, holding

Ordinance on services: SC to hear on July 10 plea filed by Delhi govt

The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear on July 10 a plea filed by the Delhi government challenging the constitutionality of the ordinance on control of services. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and Manoj Misra posted the matter for consideration after senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi mentioned the matter seeking urgent hearing. "This is a plea challenging the ordinance in whole," Singhvi said. The bench then said, "List on July 10, Monday." In its plea, the AAP government has said it is an "unconstitutional exercise of executive fiat" that attempts to "override" the top court and the basic structure of the Constitution. Besides quashing the ordinance, the Delhi government has also sought an interim stay on it. The Centre had on May 19 promulgated the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Ordinance, 2023, to create an authority for transfer and posting of Group-A officers in Delhi. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)

SC orders deferment of oath taking of chairperson designate of DERC

The Supreme Court Tuesday ordered deferment of the oath taking of Justice (retd) Umesh Kumar as the chairperson of the DERC and said it will examine the constitutional validity of a provision of the Centre's recent ordinance governing appointments such as that of the chief of the national capital's electricity regulatory authority. It also took on record the Delhi government's statement about deferring the oath taking ceremony of Justice Kumar, whose appointment has become yet another flashpoint in the turf war between the city's AAP government and the Centre. A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha said it wanted to deal with the plea challenging the Centre's notification appointing Justice Kumar as the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chairperson in a "non-controversial" manner on July 11 and so the administration of oath to him be deferred. Dr Abhishek Manu Singhvi, senior counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner (Delhi government) ..

Chhattisgarh CM Baghel hints a big 'LPG' surprise in Cong poll manifesto

Rajasthan has given LPG at Rs 500. Something needs to be kept for the announcement and if everything will be done now then what would be for the announcement (referring to the poll promise)

Power Minister Atishi falls ill, DERC chairman's oath postponed to July 6

Delhi Power Minister Atishi, who was scheduled to administer the oath of office to DERC chairperson-designate Justice (retd) Umesh Kumar on Monday, suddenly faced a "health issue" leading to postponement of the event to July 6, officials said. Kumar, the former Allahabad High Court judge, was appointed chairman of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) on June 21. The AAP dispensation has challenged his appointment in the Supreme Court. The appointment of DERC chairman is the latest flashpoint between the Delhi government and the lieutenant governor's office, following the Centre's ordinance on control of services. The AAP has also challenged the ordinance in the apex court. According to the Raj Niwas officials, Atishi wrote to the chairman-designate and asked for his availability to take the oath in her presence. "He accordingly confirmed the same," they said. Later, the event was postponed after Atishi took ill, the officials said. The Delhi government, in a statemen

Over Rs 1,100 cr property tax collected in Delhi this quarter: MCD Mayor

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has collected over Rs 1,110 crore as property tax in the April to June quarter, a surge of over 40 per cent from the same period of time the previous year. Addressing a press conference, Mayor Shelly Oberoi said the number of taxpayers has also increased to around 7.17 lakh. "A property tax of Rs 1,113 crore has been collected by the MCD," Oberoi said, adding that the figure was higher than that of 2021 and 2022. Oberoi said the Municipal Corporation was making losses before despite collecting taxes earlier also. The people of Delhi have shown faith in the Aam Aadmi Party government, she said. In 2021-22, the property tax collected was Rs 695 crore, while it was Rs 540 crore in 2020-21. Lauding the higher tax collection, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a tweet said that people are voluntarily paying their taxes due to the presence of an honest government in Delhi. "Earlier, people did not pay taxes during BJP's rule. They thought that th

SC directs Delhi govt to furnish details of funds spent on advertisements

The Supreme Court on Monday slammed the Delhi government for expressing its inability to contribute funds for construction of the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project and directed it to furnish details of funds spent on advertisements in the last three financial years. The funds were meant for construction of the RRTS stretch that will connect the national capital with Rajasthan and Haryana. A bench comprising Justice S K Kaul and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia directed the AAP government to file an affidavit enumerating details of funds within two weeks. The direction came after the counsel for the Delhi government told the bench that there was paucity of funds and expressed inability to provide monetary assistance. "You want us to get into what funds you are spending where. All funds for advertisement shall be diverted for this project. You want this kind of order? You are asking for it," the court said. "The Delhi government has expressed its inability to contribute funds for

Don't demolish religious structures in Delhi: Atishi urges LG Saxena

Delhi minister Atishi on Sunday urged Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena to "withdraw his orders" to demolish religious structures in the national capital. The fresh request by the PWD minister came after a temple and a mazar were removed amid heavy police deployment in northeast Delhi's Bhajanpura Chowk Sunday morning to pave the way for the construction of a flyover. Police said the decision to remove the two structures was taken at a "religious committee" meeting a few days ago and a proper dialogue was held with the residents and local leaders. Atishi tweeted about the demolition of the religious structures. "LG sir: Few days ago, I had written a letter requesting you to withdraw your decision to demolish temples and other religious structures in Delhi. But today a temple in Bhajanpura was demolished again. I request you again to ensure that temples and other religious structures are not demolished in Delhi. People's faith is attached to them," she said in a tweet in Hindi. The AA

AAP plans to contest all 60 seats, 2 LS constituencies in Arunachal in 2024

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has expressed its desire to field candidates in all 60 assembly constituencies and two Lok Sabha seats in Arunachal Pradesh in the general elections next year. AAP state unit general secretary Toko Nikam told reporters that the party is committed to providing free water, electricity, medical facilities till Rs 10 lakh and world class education if they come to power in the northeastern state in 2024. Nikam said that if elected to power, the AAP will repeal the controversial Arunachal Pradesh Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (APUAPA) of 2014 and the Arunachal Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act of 1978. Protests erupted in the northeastern state after the state government booked 40 people under the APUAPA in connection with a 72-hour bandh call in the state capital this year. Many organisations demanded that the state government repeal the Act which was enacted in 2014 by the Nabam Tuki-led Congress government in the state. According to the Arunachal Prades

Atishi writes to new DERC chief, requests him to take oath on July 3 or 4

Delhi Power Minister Atishi on Friday wrote to newly appointed DERC Chairman Justice (Retd) Umesh Kumar and requested him to take oath of office on July 3 or 4, sources said. Justice Kumar was appointed chairman of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) on June 21. Lt Governor VK Saxena had earlier this week written to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, flagging the "unnecessary delay" in administering the oath of office to Justice Kumar and said it should be done without further delay. Sources said Kejriwal forwarded the letter to Atishi the same day and asked her to administer the oath "as early as possible". In her communication to Justice Kumar, Atishi blamed the Power department for the confusion. Justice Kumar, a former Allahabad High Court judge, in a letter to the department, had said it was only after he was communicated that the minister would not be available in the national capital after June 29 that he came to Delhi. He said he had made himself available to

Damage control won't save Cong from defeat in Chhattisgarh: BJP, AAP

The BJP and the AAP on Thursday took a dig at the Congress over T S Singh Deo's appointment as Chhattisgarh deputy chief minister and asked if he will be the party's chief ministerial face in the upcoming elections since people have lost faith in the incumbent CM, Bhupesh Baghel. A scion of the erstwhile Sarguja royal family, Singh Deo is currently holding Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education, Twenty Point Implementation and Commercial Tax (GST) portfolios in the state government. The ruling Congress announced on Wednesday that party president Mallikarjun Kharge had approved the proposal for his appointment as the deputy chief minister. Reacting to the development, BJP IT department head Amit Malviya said Congress president Kharge appointing Singh Deo as deputy chief minister of Chhattisgarh is deeply problematic as it usurps Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel's constitutional mandate. "Before Karnataka, Baghel used to fund the Congress, but soon after winning Karnataka, once an

Don't insult hard-working people of Delhi: Kejriwal to LG on freebies

Hitting out at Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena over his remarks on "freebies", Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal asked him not to "insult" the "hard-working people" of the national capital. On Wednesday, Saxena said people of Delhi are now "used to freebies" at an event titled 'Delhi 2041 - New Master Plan' organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Saxena's remarks seem to be directed at the Aam Aadmi Party government's subsidies, primarily on water and electricity. Reacting to Saxena's remarks, Kejriwal said Saxena was an outsider and did not understand the people of Delhi. "The people of Delhi are hardworking. They have beautified Delhi by their hard work. LG sir, you have come from outside and you do not understand Delhi and Delhiites. Don't insult the people of Delhi like this," he said in a tweet in Hindi. The chief minister also said the Delhi government, unlike others, does not indulge in "theft". "We save money and provide facilities to people. What is your .

Delhi govt seeks action against appointment of DERC principal advisor

The Delhi government's vigilance directorate has written to the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL), recommending action against three former and a sitting DERC official in connection with the appointment of Ashok Kumar Singhal as the principal advisor (tariff) to the power regulator. There was no immediate reaction from the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) on the issue. Singhal termed the whole matter "pointless". "There is no issue in it. My appointment was done in a proper manner," he told PTI. The directorate, in a communication dated June 27, said the matter of appointment of DERC member Singhal as the principal advisor (tariff) was examined by it. "It emerges that the DERC has not examined the issue legally and has been totally biased in selecting Ashok Kumar Singhal as the principal advisor (tariff) after he demitted the office of member DERC," it said. The directorate further said the DERC has "violated" section 89(5) of the Electricity Act, 2003, as

3 landfill sites in Delhi to be cleared in 18 months: LG VK Saxena

Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena on Wednesday assured that the three landfill sites in the national capital will be cleared in the "next 18 months" while the Najafgarh drain will be cleaned in the "next few months". Speaking at an event here on 'Delhi 2041 - New Master Plan', Saxena cited various initiatives undertaken in the development of Yamuna flood plains, revamping of roads, and removal of garbage dumps in the city, under his tenure in the last year. He called upon Delhi citizens to participate in the beautification and grooming of the city. The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) issued a statement after the event which was also attended by Subhasish Panda, vice chairman of the authority, who said the Master Plan of Delhi 2041 (MPD-2041) would ensure sustainable development and will be notified soon. Highlighting the cleanliness work done in the national capital at an "unprecedented pace", Saxena assured that the three "garbage mountains" will be cleared in the next 18 months, and