Buses fewer by 2,000 in Delhi: AAP; BJP hits back

AAP alleges BJP removed 2,000 buses in Delhi without alternatives, causing commuter issues. BJP claims it followed court orders and is adding new buses.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-run Delhi government has arbitrarily removed 2,000 buses from city roads without any alternative arrangement. The BJP responded by calling the claims misleading.

Buses fewer by 2,000 in Delhi: AAP; BJP hits back

“The abrupt withdrawal has led to long queues, overcrowded buses, and commuters suffering under peak summer heat. The move was aimed at creating a crisis that would allow BJP’s favoured companies to profit from new contracts. The sudden removal of buses is a betrayal of BJP’s earlier promise of not to dismantle any of Arvind Kejriwal’s public welfare schemes,” AAP chief spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar said at a press conference on Sunday.

In response, transport minister Pankaj Singh clarified, “Around 2,000 end of life buses were supposed to be taken off roads as per a court order. However, after some operators got stay orders, just 700 buses had to be taken off. DTC has ensured that the buses have only been removed from non-operative routes where these buses were only running dead kilometres.”

Further, Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said it is unfortunate that in 10 years, the Arvind Kejriwal government had not added a single new bus to the DTC fleet. “As a result, all the buses currently in the DTC and cluster fleet are over 10 years old and had completed their legal fitness life between 2023 and 2024. However, by rationalising bus routes in the city, the government has ensured that no bus crisis occurs,” he added.

Additionally, transport department officials said new electric buses are being added to the fleet to bring the total bus count to 8,000 by the end of the year.