BJP councillor Mehlawat held by CBI in graft case, suspended

NEW DELHI:  The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday suspended its councillor from Vasant Kunj ward Manoj Mehlawat after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested him in connection with a bribery case.

Mehlawat had allegedly demanded the bribe to allow the construction of a house without any hindrance. Following the tip-off, a trap was laid and he was caught red-handed, said, officials. The councillor was reportedly demanding `10 lakh to facilitate the work.

The accused BJP leader was produced before a special court, which sent him to judicial custody. Delhi BJP chief Adesh Kumar Gupta in a letter to Mehlawat said his primary membership had been terminated with immediate effect.

“The BJP, abiding by its policy of zero tolerance against corruption and because of serious allegations, your primary membership is suspended with immediate effect,” said the letter. Mehlawat’s arrest gave another opportunity to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has been flagging the issue of corruption in three municipal corporations, to attack the BJP-ruled civic bodies.

Referring to the development, senior AAP leader and chief spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj said without bribing the municipal officials, one couldn’t build their own house. “The collection of money happens in a very coordinated manner. Every area of Delhi has different rates defined by the corporation and the builder mafia. Money goes from the bottom to top,” he alleged.

Bhardwaj said the AAP had been talking about massive corruption in the building department of the corporations for a long time. “When the AAP alleged that there was corruption in the building department, the BJP-ruled municipal corporations would issue threats to us in the name of defamation cases. Today, it is very clear that they do not have fame then how can we defend them,” he said.