The BJP hit back, saying that had AAP been serious, it would not have indulged in “petty politics” over the issue. (Express photo by Prem Nath Pandey)
The political slugfest over the sealing drive continued on Monday, with the BJP turning down Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s invitation to an all-party meeting scheduled for Tuesday.
Questioning Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari’s absence ahead of the meeting, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia tweeted: “Delhi BJP chief is having a good time abroad at a time (when) Delhi’s businessmen find their back broken due to the sealing drive.” Tiwari is abroad as part of a Presidential delegation.
The BJP hit back, saying that had AAP been serious, it would not have indulged in “petty politics” over the issue ahead of the meeting. “Kejriwal should instead meet members of the monitoring committee undertaking the sealing, and appoint prominent lawyers to put forth the traders’ case in the Supreme Court,” the BJP said in a statement.
AAP chief spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj also raised the issue of Tiwari’s absence, prompting the BJP to rake up Kejriwal and Sisodia’s vacations in the recent past. “Going abroad with the honourable President does not amount to holidaying; leaving Delhi’s homeless in the lurch during harsh winters and going to the Andamans does,” a BJP spokesperson said.
AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh also reiterated the party’s position that only the Centre can halt the drive — which began in December last year — by introducing a Bill or an ordinance. The three AAP MPs in the Upper House also brought a private member’s bill over the issue. However, Singh acknowledged that barely 14 such Bills have been passed since Independence.
Meanwhile, Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken, who has accepted Kejriwal’s invitation, met a traders association on Monday evening to “discuss possible solutions” to provide relief to businesses impacted by the drive.