Taking a swipe at the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the YSR Congress party (YSRCP) for supporting the Centre on Delhi Services Bill, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Raghav Chadha on Wednesday said they were “compelled” to do so.
“Kuch to majburiya rahi hogi, yuhin nahi koi bewafa hota, ji karta hai ki bahut sach kahu, kya kare hausla nahi hota…(There must have been some compulsion, people don’t turn unfaithful for no reason),” Chadha commented while talking to media.
Chadha on Tuesday termed the introduction of the bill in Lok Sabha a “desperate attempt” of the Narendra Modi government to wrest power from the Arvind Kejriwal-led party and render the Delhi government “ineffective”.
Both, BJD and the YSR Congress decided to extend their support to the contentious bill, aimed at allowing the Centre to retain control over the bureaucracy in Delhi.
The AAP MP also said, “if this experiment (by the BJP) gets successful in Delhi, it will be replicated in all non-BJP ruling governments.”
On Tuesday, the AAP said that the INDIA bloc parties will oppose the Delhi services bill and expressed hope that many BJP MPs will also vote against it to protect the Constitution.
The bill, which gives the lieutenant governor the final say on the transfer and posting of officials of the city government, will replace an ordinance promulgated on May 19.
The ordinance virtually negated the Supreme Court verdict on May 11 that gave the elected AAP dispensation control over services, including transfer and posting of bureaucrats of the city government.
“This bill, which seeks to give overriding powers to the bureaucracy and the lieutenant governor, will replace democracy in Delhi with ‘babucracy’,” Chadha had claimed.
“This an attack on our judiciary, which ruled in favour of the elected government (of Delhi). This is an assault on India’s federal structure, democracy, and constitution,” Chadha added.
The AAP has called the Delhi services bill as the “most undemocratic” piece of legislation.
The Union government on Tuesday tabled the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023 in Lok Sabha amid vociferous protests by opposition MPs.
Home Minister Amit Shah asserted that Parliament is empowered to make laws for Delhi and termed the objection to it “politically motivated”.
(With inputs from PTI)
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Updated: 02 Aug 2023, 06:37 PM IST