Vijender Gupta alleges harassment by AAP government

Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta on Friday alleged harassment by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party government following his complaint which resulted in an Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) probe being ordered in the proposed premium bus service.

“The staff of my office were withdrawn without my knowledge, and now the driver of my official vehicle is being forced to return back with the vehicle at the Secretariat,” Mr Gupta said. The Leader of the Opposition has filed a complaint at the Parliament Street police station in this regard and also claimed that the driver of his official vehicle was being forced to return it back to the Delhi Secretariat. The Delhi ACB has launched a probe into the app-based premium bus service on Mr Gupta’s complaint, alleging the service was aimed at benefiting a private bus aggregator.

Mr Gupta and Delhi BJP president Satish Upadhyaya said the issue will be raised before Union home minister Rajnath Singh. “Just after coming to power, the Kejriwal government had clearly indicated that opposition and dissent are not acceptable to them. It tried its best not to give recognition to the Leader of the Opposition on the basis of its strength in the House, but finally it had to do so under the pressure of the people. Recently, it has been seen that the security men deputed in the Assembly and Secretariat try to stop mediapersons from reaching to the chamber of the Leader of the Opposition,” Mr Upadhyay said.

Mr Gupta and Mr Up-adhyay said that the Delhi BJP demands that the Kejriwal government mu-st work in accordance with the democratic norms and give respect and proper place to the Opposition. “Chief minister Mr Kejriwal must understand that he is not the emperor of Delhi, only a chief minister, and in democracy the Opposition will always raise voice against corruption in the government,” said both the leaders.

AAP Delhi unit convenor Dilip Pandey, meanwhile, said that Mr Gupta should not misled people on the issue. “Mr Gupta’s allegation of conspiracy and vendetta on the removal of his personal staff are baseless and such statements do not suit his stature. The Delhi government recognised him as the Leader of the Opposition even when the BJP did not have the numbers,” Mr Pandey said.

Delhi BJP leaders will also pay a visit to Rajghat on Saturday to pray for good sense of the Kejriwal government. The Delhi BJP claimed that the AAP dispensation was acting against Mr Gupta in a revengeful manner.