Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Express Photo by Amit Mehra.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s allegation against a “useless officer”, contested deaths of 44 homeless persons and Delhi’s cold wave have led to a fresh spat between the Delhi government and Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal.
It began after reports, quoting an NGO, claimed 44 homeless people had died in the capital in January. The reports were rejected by DUSIB CEO Shurbir Singh. However, Kejriwal targeted Singh and wrote on Twitter, “Media reporting 44 deaths of homeless due to cold. Am issuing showcause notice to CEO, DUSIB. Negligible deaths last year. This year, L-G appointed a useless officer. L-G refuses to consult us before appointing officers. How do we run (the government) like this?”
Singh rejected the reports saying it would be wrong to link the deaths of the homeless to the cold, while claiming that he would appropriately respond to the government if he receives any showcause notice. The L-G office did not respond to the allegation.
“DUSIB categorically rejects the report of deaths. One cannot associate deaths of the homeless with cold. No government department has shared any such data with us,” Singh said, adding that in cases where the homeless refuse to move to shelters, the government’s mandate is to “try and persuade them to come to shelters, but we cannot force anyone.”
The number originates from information compiled by Sunil Kumar Aledia of the NGO, Centre for Holistic Development. While alleging corruption within DUSIB, he said, “I don’t want to get into politics but it’s a fact that harsh winters and summers are chief triggers behind the deaths of homeless people.”
This past month, Aledia, along with AAP minister Kapil Mishra and BJP chief Manoj Tiwari, have been making rounds of places where the homeless gather. A government spokesperson said, “These are deaths where the cause of death is unknown. The information is being misused to target the Delhi government.” The BJP, though, jumped into the fray, attacking the government. “So many people had to die, before you realised the gravity of the situation… since AAP claims to be helpless, we demand an all party meet on priority basis,” Tiwari said.
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