The BJP on Sunday indicated reviewing the previous Congress Government’s decision of the trifurcation of the erstwhile MCD as frequent tussles between the Delhi Government and the three municipal corporations in the Capital landed in the court of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh. The Home Minister has assured a high-level meeting to resolve the issues. In a meeting with Singh, the senior functionaries of the three Corporations alleged undue interference by the Government in functioning of the civic bodies as they also sought Centre’s nod for recruitment of employees in various departments for efficient functioning of the corporations.
leading the delegation, Delhi BJP President and Standing Committee Chairman in South Delhi Corporation, Satish Upadhyay told the Home Minister that trifurcation of the erstwhile MCD was done in the year 2012 in haste by the then Congress-led Delhi Government without ensuring proper staff, financial viability and other administrative requirements as a result of which there have been shortcomings in the working of municipal bodies. “The Home Minister has assured the delegation that he will soon call a high-level meeting to solve the problems between the municipal bodies and Delhi Government,” Upadhyay said after the meeting.
On whether BJP would unite the three civic bodies — East, North and South Delhi Municipal Corporations — Upadhyay said a review may be carried out. “It is a policy matter. One has to analyse everything, whether trifurcation was good or whether it was bad. There may be a review of the decision,” he said. In April 2012, The Congress-led Delhi Government had trifurcated the MCD, then considered one of the largest municipal bodies in the world, despite strong opposition from BJP, arguing that its split would ensure better governance.
In May this year, two Mayors, both from BJP, said that they preferred a unified civic body for Delhi over a trifurcated one. North Delhi Municipal Corporation Mayor Yogender Chandolia and East Delhi Mayor Meenakshi had said they would impress upon party leadership for a united civic body. The trifurcation brought with it, concomitant issues and created conflict in resource allocations among the MCDs. The BJP has been ruling the MCD for the last seven years.
The delegation, which also comprised the Mayor and leader of House in three Corporations, demanded that the freeze on recruitment of sanitation workers, beldars, gardeners, clerks, engineers etc. in the civic bodies be immediately removed as there has been a huge shortfall of employees. This, according to them, had resulted in poor sanitation and maintenance work in Delhi.
“All three municipal bodies want to start development work in nearly 1000 unauthorised colonies in Delhi but due to the road blocks created by the Delhi government during the last 15 years, they are unable to start work,” the delegation apprised the Home Minister.