Security personnel conduct a flag march during clashes in north-east Delhi on February 25, 2020.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Voters in the North East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency, which will see a direct contest between two-time BJP MP Manoj Tiwari and Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar, say they are tired of “divisive politics” and will cast their ballots in favour of development. The seat goes to polls in the sixth phase on May 25.
“This constituency needs better roads, schools, hospitals, houses, but every single politician plays divisive politics using the same old ‘Hindu-Muslim’ narrative. When will we ever see development?” says Bablu Gautam, a plumber and resident of Shiv Vihar, whose bylanes are festooned with saffron flags bearing the image of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. “We get no help from party leaders, only politics,” he says.
Mr. Gautam recalls the riots that rocked north-east Delhi in February 2020, which claimed 53 lives and left hundreds injured. He says his family of four did not step out of their house for two days when the violence raged. “We became the headline for days; many leaders used our names in their speeches. But have these leaders paid us a visit and seen that we live amid mounting piles of garbage and foul-smelling water?” he says.
Even during the nationwide lockdown imposed following the outbreak of COVID-19, political leaders did not provide any help to the residents, Mr. Gautam says. “Neighbours helped each other amid the riots and made sure the area remained safe. The poor were either killed or arrested. Those who orchestrated the riots are still scot-free.”
‘Loss of jobs’
Muslims constitute around 13% of Delhi’s population, and in north-east Delhi, this figure stands at 29.34%, as per the 2011 Census. In Old Mustafabad, Mudassir Abbas, 27, whose brother Ashfaq Hussain, 24, was shot dead during the riots, says, “We know the political situation in our country, even our children know how hatred is being spread between communities.”
Mr. Abbas points out that people in this constituency have lost jobs due to the riots. “Some had to shut down their restaurants as certain people do not want to eat food made by members of other communities. This is what the riot has done in an area already struggling with poverty.”
He stresses there needs to be “more conversation about development in the area and not hate between Hindu and Muslims”. “We have all seen the hate speeches delivered by leaders at various rallies, the targeted attacks on the Muslim community, and calls for its complete economic boycott. Is this what the people of north-east Delhi deserve?” he says.
Mr. Abbas says no politician wants to address “the lack of public toilets, parks, or proper hospitals in the area and the unsanitary conditions we live in”. “Whenever we file complaints, we are ignored or harassed by the police,” he says.
‘No one listens’
In New Mustafabad, a few residents are discussing the upcoming election on a busy road, which has been dug up, with garbage piling up on the pavement. “Look at the condition of this neighbourhood. If a leader comes for a rally, then at least it will be cleaned. We don’t have any kind of hope that politicians will do anything for us,” says Tahir Malik, 45, a scrap dealer.
Mohammad Fareeb, 54, who sells papayas, says, “The roads were laid during the Congress rule. There hasn’t been much development since then. The water is contaminated and the streets are dirty, but nobody listens to us. We have a BJP MP [Tiwari] and an AAP MLA [Haji Yunus], but locals feel the situation hasn’t changed since the last Assembly election in 2020.”