Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj on Friday launched a sharp attack on the BJP’s Rekha Gupta government for rebranding existing Mohalla Clinics and government dispensaries as Ayushman Arogya Mandirs to claim credit for opening 370 new facilities in the capital.
The AAP Delhi Unit Chief stated that clinics established during the Arvind Kejriwal government, as well as dispensaries run by the Delhi government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), are simply being renamed to project fresh achievements. He said that if the CM’s claim of opening 370 Arogya Mandirs is accurate, she should clarify how many of these are functioning in newly constructed buildings.
AAP Delhi Unit President Saurabh Bharadwaj stated that the truth will not be hidden simply because the Chief Minister and BJP leaders make false claims. “People of Delhi know that most of the Arogya Mandirs opened by the Rekha Gupta government are functioning within already existing health facilities, and in many of them the same staff, pharmacists and doctors who were previously posted in dispensaries continue to work,” he stated.
Delhi residents, Saurabh Bharadwaj said, are aware that the BJP government only makes grand claims, takes credit for others’ work, and does not carry out work on the ground itself. “This is why public health services in Delhi are steadily deteriorating,” he added.
Sharing photographs on X of CM Rekha Gupta inaugurating Arogya Mandirs, Saurabh Bharadwaj asked her to clarify how many of these 370 “Arogya Mandirs” were built in new buildings; how many were previously used as Mohalla Clinics; how many were earlier Delhi government dispensaries; and how many were formerly Municipal Corporation of Delhi dispensaries.
The AAP Delhi State Chief said the Chief Minister cannot hide the truth by refusing to answer. According to him, all 370 Arogya Mandirs are places where health facilities already existed in most cases. “The Chief Minister has not even changed the doctors or staff and is merely trying to gain false praise through repainting,” he said.
Saurabh Bharadwaj further said, “The Chief Minister had earlier assured the poor staff, pharmacists and doctors of Mohalla Clinics that her government would not remove them from their jobs.” However, he stated, they were deceived and dismissed as soon as the opportunity arose.
He questioned what value remained in the Chief Minister’s promise, noting that many of them are now unemployed and asking what will happen to their families and children. Addressing Rekha Gupta directly, Saurabh Bharadwaj said she would face the anguish of those families and children and that God would not forgive her.
