Delhi CM slams opposition for misleading slum dwellers, assures rehabilitation

Rekha Gupta assured that she would speak to the Ministry of Railways and make arrangements for housing for the residents of this area

Chief minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday said that the Delhi government has allocated ₹700 crore for the redevelopment of slum settlements across the national capital and assured that eligible residents will be provided housing if their jhuggi clusters are cleared for infrastructure projects.

Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta at the “faatak wali jhuggi” near the railway crossing in Shalimar Bagh on Sunday. (HT Photo)

Gupta was speaking during a visit to the “faatak wali jhuggi” near the railway crossing in Shalimar Bagh, which has received a demolition notice from the Indian Railways to make way for the expansion of Azadpur railway station. Gupta said her government was committed to ensuring a “dignified relocation” of all eligible slum dwellers displaced due to such projects.

“When a crisis came upon you, I came to meet you. The Delhi government is not in favour of removing slums without reason. If there is a need to remove slums for development projects, we will ensure eligible families are properly rehabilitated,” Gupta told residents of the settlement.

She assured that she would speak to the Ministry of Railways and make arrangements for housing for the residents of this area.

Gupta alleged that the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government did not take any action on the matter, despite a survey of the settlement being conducted in 2020 and slammed the party for misleading the slum dwellers with liquor instead of “real development”.

“No talks were held with the Railways. No plan was made for the people. We have now begun working on a solution so that residents do not face hardship… The same people who did nothing when they were in power are now trying to scare and provoke residents,” she said, adding that the opposition had only treated slum dwellers as a “vote bank” while encouraging the supply of alcohol in such areas.

“During their government, they merely saw slum residents as vote banks and encouraged the supply of alcohol to these areas. Now that the current government is working on developmental schemes for the slum communities, these leaders are trying to incite unrest and mislead the residents,” Gupta said.

Gupta said the current government’s focus is on improving living standards in jhuggi clusters through the construction of roads, lanes, and pavements, along with better access to drinking water, toilets, and bathing facilities for women.

In response, an AAP spokesperson said, “Rekha Gupta has been consistently lying on the issue. We challenge her to publish the list of jhuggies her government has demolished.”

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, posted on X, “Hundreds of poor families living in Delhi’s slums are in pain today. The small houses in which they had lived their whole lives were ruthlessly destroyed by the BJP government. These were not just houses - these were their dreams, their dignity and their means of living. This atrocity being committed under the guise of administration exposes BJP’s insensitivity towards the poor and its arrogance of power.”