The Supreme Court may have halted the anti-encroachment drive in Delhi's Jahangirpuri on Wednesday, but a political war has erupted.
The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) had began a two-day anti-encroachment drive in Jahangirpuri from Wednesday. The action came days after the locality witnessed communal violence on Hanuman Jayanti. Media reports said the drive targeted structures associated with people accused of involvement in the Jahangirpuri violence.
Bulldozers razed shops and other structures for over two hours after the Supreme Court issued orders to maintain status quo at the locality. According to NDTV, nine bulldozers moved to the locality.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which rules Delhi, and the BJP, which controls the NDMC, engaged in a war of words.
BJP leader Kapil Mishra, who was formerly with the AAP, raised the bogey of illegal immigrants being involved in the Jahangirpuri violence. He tweeted on Wednesday “Do Bangladeshi infiltrators look like [Delhi Chief Minister Arvind] Kejriwal's son-in-law who is beating the entire AAP party chest? Kejriwal's gang has come down to save these criminals who run betting, smack, ganja. Bulldozer on Bangladeshi and Rohingya means bulldozer on Kejriwal's soul.”
The BJP had previously accused the AAP government of providing amenities to illegal immigrants.
AAP MLA Atishi tweeted “Riots are taking place across the country. Bullying and rumblings are taking place from place to place. BJP is getting all these riots done. We guarantee, send bulldozers to BJP HQ, the riots of the entire country will stop.”
Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi justified the action at Jahangirpuri. He said action has been taken on the basis of “crime and conspiracy”, not on “caste and community”.
