AAP tells LG to resign for felling trees in Satbari

AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, in separate press conferences, alleged that the land for road widening was to be acquired from farmhouses in the region

New Delhi

The under-construction road, as clicked by HT on July 2. (Sanchit Khanna/HT)

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday sought the resignation of lieutenant governor (LG) VK Saxena over the issue of felling of 1,100 trees in Satbari, south Delhi, for a road widening project in the environmentally sensitive Ridge area. It also sought a “high level” probe into the illegal felling and “placing of facts before Supreme Court”.

AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, in separate press conferences, alleged that the land for road widening was to be acquired from farmhouses in the region, but “LG got trees cut”.

“As many as 1,100 trees were cut down by the LG of Delhi... Even the Supreme Court reprimanded, but the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has maintained silence. The BJP, which criticises Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP day and night, is not uttering a word against the LG despite being repeatedly reprimanded by the Supreme Court. This means that the BJP is fully involved in the destruction of Delhi along with the LG,” Sanjay Singh said.

The LG’s office and the BJP refused to comment on the issue, saying it was sub judice.

Around 1,100 trees were felled in Satbari area by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) earlier this year to pave the way for the road widening. The matter is currently being heard in the Supreme Court on a contempt petition filed by a Delhi resident, who alleged trees were cut despite a March 4 court order denying permission.

The felling of trees triggered a fresh round of tussle between the AAP government and the bureaucrats working under the Delhi government, with the environment minister forming a three-minister fact-finding committee on June 29. Soon after it was formed, the committee was called illegal by environment secretary who stated in a letter to environment minister that “the committee has been set up in violation of rules.”

On Monday, Bharadwaj said the affidavit of the DDA’s contractor who felled the trees “proved” that the LG gave the order to fell trees.

“The contractor submitted an email as part of his affidavit in the Supreme Court. It was clearly written in the email that trees were felled on the directions of the LG. It has also been written that when trees were being felled on February 13, rangers of the forest department stopped it. On February 14, the order was given to fell the trees even without permission. The forest department, DDA and LG knew that there was no permission to fell the trees,” Bharadwaj said.

Sanjay Singh said land of farmhouses was to be acquired for the project.

“The UTTIPEC (Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure Planning & Engineering Centre), which decides where and how roads will be laid in Delhi comes under the DDA and is headed by the LG. The road map by UTTIPEC showed roads will be built on the land of farmhouses; their land will be acquired to carve out/widen roads... I want to ask what deal was made with the BJP people and LG with farmhouse owners,” Singh said.

“A high-level investigation in the matter should be done, all facts should be placed before the Supreme Court and action should be taken against all responsible persons, including LG and officers responsible for this,” Singh said.

Reading out the affidavit of the contractor, Bharadwaj said: “The subject of the email was ‘hindrance with respect to existing trees’. It is written that LG Delhi visited CAPFIMS (Central Armed Police Forces Institute of Medical Sciences) road on February 3, 2024, and directed to clear the trees coming in the ROW (right of way).”

“It is very clear that DDA knows that there is no permission from competent authority to cut trees... This is what the executive engineer of DDA is writing to his chief engineer. So, when the LG sir visited on February 3, how was the permission granted then? They are saying that the trees were cut due to confusion and nobody knew that there was no permission. This is a blatant lie,” Bharadwaj said.

“The LG should resign on immediate basis because he has been exposed in front of Delhi. His theft has been caught,” Bharadwaj said.