Congress disrupts MCD meet over illegal colonies

Congress, the opposition party in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), disrupted the House meeting on Monday, alleging that the BJP-led civic body was refusing to develop unauthorised colonies in the Capital.

Congress, the opposition party in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), disrupted the House meeting on Monday, alleging that the BJP-led civic body was refusing to develop unauthorised colonies in the Capital.

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According to Congress leaders, the Delhi government’s urban development ministry had asked the MCD to start development work in 12 unauthorised colonies falling under ward No. 129 in Dabri and ward No. 130 in Mangolpuri, but the civic body has refused to do so.

Leader of the Opposition JK Sharma said on one hand the MCD was demanding right to spend money in unauthorised colonies, while on the other it had refused to develop areas where the right had been given.

According to a court ruling, only the Delhi government is allowed to spend money in unauthorised colonies — a dictum that the MCD has been opposing for a long. In case of Dabri and Mangolpuri, however, the urban development ministry had given clear instructions to the civic body to sanction amount for development.

However, mayor Rajni Abbi refused to sanction the amount saying that there should be no pick-and-choose policy and the money would be spent only when the MCD was given the right to develop all 1,600-odd unauthorised colonies in the city.

Sharma termed the mayor’s statement as ‘invalid’, saying that said on February 14, the MCD had sanctioned money for the development of unauthorised colonies in Ravi Nagar and Vishnu Garden.

The Congress feels that the BJP has refused to sanction the money because both the wards belong to Congress councillors. “This is petty politics. Just because a councillor is from the opposition party, the colonies are being allowed to suffer negligence,” said Sharma.