The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) revealed that MCD Commissioner Ashwani Kumar, is imposing fresh tax burdens on Delhiites without the approval or consultation of the elected Mayor.
AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj pointed out that Ashwani Kumar is working entirely at the behest of the BJP, having hiked commercial licence fees and unilaterally imposed a User Charge tax in violation of House protocol.
Despite the MCD House passing a proposal to waive property tax on plots up to 100 sq yards and reduce it by half on plots up to 500 sq yards, the Commissioner has failed to implement it. Delhi Mayor Mahesh Khichi demanded Ashwani Kumar’s immediate removal, warning that inaction from the Centre would signal BJP’s direct backing of the Commissioner’s actions.
Addressing a press conference, AAP Delhi President Saurabh Bharadwaj slammed MCD Commissioner for going against House-approved relief in property tax, stating, “In the latest budget of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Delhiites were given a significant relief from inflation by the elected MCD government and the Mayor. The budget was formally passed in the House. It stated that property tax should be completely waived for all properties below 100 square yards, and that for properties between 100 and 500 square yards, property tax should be halved. Despite this clear decision, MCD Commissioner Ashwini Kumar has not implemented it till now. He is sitting on the matter.”
Highlighting other major non-implementations, Saurabh Bharadwaj added, “The budget also included provisions to regularise 12,000 MCD employees, but Ashwini Kumar is sitting on that too. A few days ago, without consulting the House or the Mayor, instead of reducing property tax, he arbitrarily increased it by adding user charges.”
“These user charges are being forcibly collected from the public. If someone doesn’t pay the user charge, their property tax is not being accepted. There was no consultation with the Mayor on this. Even after the Mayor wrote to him, this tax was imposed on the people,” he emphasised.
The AAP Delhi State President revealed that the MCD Commissioner raised commercial license fees without consultation. He said, “Yesterday, the fees for commercial licenses were also hiked—again without any consultation with the Mayor. In response, MCD Mayor Mahesh Khichi has now written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Commissioner Ashwini Kumar has long been close to the BJP. BJP has ensured he always gets prime postings.”
“So, we have requested Amit Shah to remove him. Ashwini Kumar, who is the MCD Commissioner, is running the BJP’s agenda within the corporation,” he shared.
Saurabh Bharadwaj pointed to media statements for further proof, stating, “For the last few days, I’ve seen BJP spokespersons making statements in newspapers saying that these decisions are wrong. But the Aam Aadmi Party is also saying these moves are wrong. So when both BJP and AAP agree something wrong has been done, then why is BJP’s favourite officer Ashwini Kumar still enforcing these wrong decisions?”
He added, “If there is no collusion between BJP and Ashwini Kumar, then he should be suspended immediately and a new Commissioner should be appointed. Otherwise, it will be clear to the people of Delhi that Ashwini Kumar, the MCD Commissioner, is working on BJP’s agenda and taking directions from them.”
Saurabh Bharadwaj further added, “This is why a letter will be sent to Honourable Home Minister Amit Shah. If no action is taken from Amit Shah’s side, then our elected councillors will try to get their work done from Ashwini Kumar in their own way. And if that doesn’t work, we will adopt other methods.”
Meanwhile, Mayor Mahesh Khichi reiterated demand to roll back user charges, stating, “I had written to the Commissioner saying that these user charges being imposed are not in the interest of the public. They are an additional financial burden on the people. A resolution had also been passed in the House regarding property tax—that tax on properties under 100 square yards should be waived, and for those between 100 and 500 square yards, it should be halved.”
The Mayor added, “Despite this, the Commissioner has gone ahead and increased license fees too. The public of Delhi is already overburdened with many costs, and now more and more taxes are being piled on top.”
He slammed BJP for burdening Delhiites with taxes and backtracking on promises, stating, “Ever since the BJP has come to power in Delhi, school fees have increased, and now they’re collecting more money under the guise of ‘user charges’. In Delhi, people already pay sanitation workers separately to collect garbage, and now the BJP has added user charges on top of that. The public is fed up under this mountain of taxes—where will they get all this money from?”
He added, “Delhiites are already crushed by inflation. Everything is becoming more expensive. BJP had made big promises—like giving Rs 2,500 to every woman if voted to power in Delhi. That promise was never fulfilled. They also promised LPG cylinders at Rs. 500 and free cylinders during festivals, but that too they did not deliver.”
On BJP’s betrayal of public trust, Mayor Mahesh Khichi stated, “Delhiites are now openly saying they made a mistake by voting for the BJP. They were promised relief from inflation, but instead, more and more taxes have been imposed. This is a clear betrayal of the people of Delhi by the BJP.”
He continued, “We have written to the Ministry of Home Affairs, to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, requesting that Ashwini Kumar, the current MCD Commissioner, be immediately removed. He should be replaced with an officer of clean image so that the people of Delhi can move forward with ease. That is our demand.”
During a media interaction, the Mayor was ssked whether any direct conversation took place with the Commissioner regarding the tax rollback, he replied, “Yes, we did speak with the Commissioner and told him to implement the proposal we passed in the House. We even asked him to call a meeting of all officials to execute it at the earliest. But his usual responses are: ‘Yes, yes, we’ll see… we’ll do it.’”
Delhi Mayor Mahesh Kumar Khichi Letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah:
“I would like to respectfully draw your attention towards the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), which is the largest autonomous and constitutional body in the country. It is responsible for providing essential civic amenities to a vast population of Delhi and plays a pivotal role in making the city clean and beautiful.
For the effective execution of these responsibilities, it is imperative to have mutual coordination and cooperation between the executive officers of the Corporation and the heads of its deliberative wings and legislative bodies.
However, it is with great regret that I must inform you that, in recent days, the conduct of the Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi has been marked by indifference.
A few months ago, the House of the Municipal Corporation—which is the supreme authority of the Corporation—passed several important resolutions in the interest of the people of Delhi. These include:
1. A proposal for a ‘Aam Maafi Yojana’ for property tax was passed to provide relief to the people of Delhi from inflation and taxes.
2. A proposal to regularize 12,000 contractual employees of the Corporation was also passed, with necessary budgetary provisions made for their salaries.
3. Despite this, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, without consulting or seeking the consent of the House, imposed an additional financial burden on the citizens in the form of user charges, which is inappropriate. As Mayor, I wrote to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Delhi and the Commissioner, requesting immediate withdrawal of this decision.
Unfortunately, the Commissioner has taken no positive steps on any of these matters, reflecting an apathetic attitude toward the Corporation and the citizens of Delhi.
Therefore, it is expected that you will play an important role in safeguarding the interests of the people of Delhi and appoint a person with a positive and constructive mindset as the Chief Executive Officer (Commissioner) of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.”
