Delhi BJP requests Centre to restart Metro, AAP says ‘nothing but drama’

The BJP said that ever since the unlock process has begun, people are facing a lot of difficulty in commuting due to lack of public transport. It hit out at the AAP government for doing little to provide adequate public transport to people of Delhi.

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Delhi unit has requested the Centre to restart Metro service in the national capital. Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta and MLA Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, met housing and urban affairs minister Hardeep Singh Puri in this regard on Wednesday.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) staff perform maintenance work on a train coach ahead of Unlock 4 in Delhi, at Timarpur Metro yard in New Delhi. (Sonu Mehta/HT PHOTO)

Later, the party leaders slammed the Aam Aadmi Party government in the Capital for doing little to provide adequate public transport to the people. The AAP hit back, saying despite the fact that the decision to reopen Metro rests with the L-G and the Centre, the BJP is fooling people.

Gupta said, “We have requested the minister to start Metro, which is Delhi’s transport lifeline, at the earliest and issue guidelines for the same.”

The BJP said that ever since the unlock process has begun, people are facing a lot of difficulty in commuting due to lack of public transport. It hit out at the AAP government for doing little to provide adequate public transport to people of Delhi.

“If the Delhi government was concerned about the transport system, it could have bought buses, used school buses, hired private operator buses to ensure people don’t face any difficulty. But they did not, as the reality is that they do not want to work,” said Gupta.

After the meeting with Puri, Bidhuri said, “In Delhi, weekly markets have been allowed to operate. Then why can’t Metro operations resume? People of Delhi are facing a lot of problems and if the Metro starts it will be a big relief to them.”

In a statement, the AAP said, “The BJP is doing nothing but drama. The BJP is at the Centre, the L-G reports to the Centre and yet the party enacts a drama every day, sending requests to their own government. The party demands reopening of gyms but the L-G disapproves. What is this if not a drama. People understand everything.”

New BJP team

Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta appointed 250 new mandal –the lowest level in the party’s state unit hierarchy—presidents to start the work for the municipal elections, scheduled in 2022. For the first time, the BJP has appointed 20 women party workers as presidents of a mandal (ward).

Gupta, who took charge of Delhi BJP in June, had earlier told HT that more women party workers will be given key responsibilities. The new state team will be announced in the next few days.