The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has lambasted Chief Minister Rekha Gupta’s government for brazenly betraying the capital’s poorest residents. “Within 24 hours of CM Rekha Gupta’s promise, bulldozers arrived at Barapullah’s Madrasi Camp and flattened hundreds of homes,” Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj said, pointing out that the demolition came immediately after a state-sponsored PR stunt where actor Anupam Kher was flown in to mark the government’s 100-day anniversary.
The CM had claimed during the event that not a single jhuggi would be touched — a promise shattered the very next day. Saurabh Bharadwaj further called on Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin to take note of how the BJP is treating the Tamil community living in Delhi, whose lives have been upended overnight.
Senior AAP leader and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Atishi, took to ‘X’ and wrote: “Before the elections, BJP leaders visited the Madrasi Camp and got residents to fill out forms under the slogan ‘Jahan jhuggi, wahi makaan’ (Houses where the slums are). But as soon as the BJP came to power, bulldozers were sent to demolish these very ‘jhuggis’. A handful of people were given homes—and those too, far away in Narela. Most residents have been left homeless on the streets. This is the true face of the BJP.”
In a media interaction, AAP Delhi State President and senior leader Saurabh Bharadwaj stated, “On Saturday, Delhi CM Rekha Gupta organised a hefty event at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium to mark 100 days of her government, entirely at the taxpayer’s expense,” Saurabh Bharadwaj said. “In this event, actor Anupam Kher – who is frequently seen advocating for the BJP – was made the anchor to conduct a scripted interview with the Chief Minister. During this charade of an interview, a question was posed: Are jhuggi clusters being demolished in Delhi? As usual, CM Rekha Gupta lied blatantly in her response.”
Saurabh Bharadwaj reiterated AAP’s long-standing stand on slum rehabilitation, saying: “Not a single slum should be demolished in Delhi. People living in jhuggis should be given dignified housing at the same location. On May 31, CM Rekha Gupta lied to Delhi’s people on this very issue, and on June 1, early in the morning, BJP government bulldozers arrived at Barapullah’s Madrasi Camp and demolished hundreds of jhuggis, rendering thousands homeless.”
He added that the residents of the Madrasi Camp were primarily from Tamil Nadu and had been living in the same location for 40–50 years. “These residents have ration cards, voter IDs, and Aadhaar cards issued at this address. Their children study in nearby schools. Their workplaces are in the vicinity. Yet, despite this, they were evicted without being allotted proper housing.”
Saurabh Bharadwaj said the BJP was now claiming that the evicted families would be given homes in Narela. “But PM Narendra Modi had made a promise – ‘Jahan jhuggi, wahan makaan’ – meaning people would be given flats at the same location where they live, where their livelihoods and schools are. Now they are being told to move 50 kilometres away to Narela. This is outright injustice.”
He further questioned the BJP’s intentions ahead of elections in Tamil Nadu. “Is this the BJP’s gift to the people of Tamil Nadu? That those who’ve lived in Delhi for 40–50 years – families originally from Tamil Nadu – are being uprooted and their homes demolished? Will BJP now ask them for votes after such injustice?”
Meanwhile, former AAP MLA Praveen Kumar said, “The BJP government is running bulldozers in Madrasi Camp. When the AAP government was in power in Delhi, we had stopped all such demolition drives. Ever since AAP’s government was removed, jhuggi demolitions have resumed in full force.”
Praveen Kumar said the Madarasi Camp had been a registered jhuggi cluster under Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), with over half the residents now being displaced without adequate rehabilitation. “Even those who’ve been given houses are being shifted 50 km away to Narela. What will they do there? There are no basic facilities, no schools, no jobs. Even the drinking water in Narela is severely contaminated.”
Praveen Kumar said the BJP is deliberately tormenting Delhi’s poor. “Delhi’s people made a huge mistake by voting for the BJP. After demolishing jhuggis, the BJP will soon run bulldozers over flats too – all to hand over prime land in Delhi to their millionaire friends and industrialists. The BJP wants to crush the poor. What never happened under the Arvind Kejriwal government is now happening rapidly under BJP rule.”
