New Delhi, Aug 1 (IANS) Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva on Friday welcomed the announcement made by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta that no government department in the city will be allowed to remove any slum cluster without first handing over possession of an alternative home to residents.

The announcement by the CM followed her meeting with Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena.

The Delhi BJP President said that the BJP-led Delhi government is committed to providing in-situ housing — that is, homes at the same location where the slums exist — to slum cluster residents.

At the same time, wherever slum dwellers are living in hazardous conditions, such as near drains or railway tracks, it is also the government’s duty to provide them with safer and better housing, he said.

Sachdeva said that every slum dweller aspires for a better home and a better life. However, over the past 27 years, the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) governments treated slum residents not as human beings, but merely as a vote bank.

The dwellers were forced to live in miserable conditions without any basic amenities by the previous government, he said, adding that, in contrast, the BJP is committed to improving the quality of life for those living in slum clusters.

Sachdeva emphasised that while the Rekha Gupta government is fulfilling the dreams of the poor, Arvind Kejriwal’s government used to sell them false dreams and deceive them for votes.

In another development, Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor stated that Delhi AAP President Saurabh Bharadwaj appears shocked by the BJP government’s master plan to prevent waterlogging and ensure timely drainage.

From 2015 to 2024, when Delhi turned into a lake every monsoon, Bharadwaj conveniently avoided responsibility and has now resorted to making baseless statements.

The Delhi BJP spokesperson said that the first phase of this year’s monsoon is coming to an end, and due to both divine grace and the government’s efforts to prevent waterlogging, not a single death has occurred because of water accumulation.

Kapoor reminded Bharadwaj that during his own tenure as minister, there were 30 accidental deaths due to waterlogging in Delhi in July 2024 alone.

–IANS

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