Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal made yet another scathing attack on Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal over the appointment of Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board CEO, Shurbir Singh. Calling the officer “useless”, Kejriwal issued a showcause notice to the DUSIB CEO over the alleged death of 44 homeless people in the Capital due to extreme cold conditions.
“Media reporting 44 deaths of homeless due to cold. Am issuing showcause notice to CEO, DUSIB. Negligible deaths last year. This year, L-G appointed a useless officer. L-G refuses to consult us before appointing officers. How do we run govt like this?,” Kejriwal tweeted.
However, refuting the allegation, Singh stated,”There is no role of DUSIB in the entire incident. Also, no such data has been prepared to confirm that these deaths happened to the cold weather. No such death has been reported. As per our winter action plan, a three-tier monitoring system is being followed and all the issues are checked regularly. Compared to last year, the ground level rescue team is more active this year.”
In the last one week, a total of 6,217 homeless people have been provided shelter homes.
Aam Aadmi Party MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj commenting on the issue said the”useless officer” that Kejriwal mentioned was”the same officer for whom (the) Assembly Committee recommended adverse remarks in his service record”.
“Chief Secretary Kutty went to the HC to defend this officer against the Committee. Honourable L-G will never act against such officers,” he added in his tweet.
CM Kejriwal had announced that additional bunk beds, geysers would be installed at the city’s night shelters to ensure that the homeless people do not die in the winter chill. Even the Health Department started its drive to provide medical treatment to the homeless. In order to accommodate the families of patients, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) opened the subway where around 300 people waiting outside the hospital took refuge during Saturday night.
Meanwhile, Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari alleged that the Arvind Kejriwal government was totally insensitive towards the deaths of the homeless due to the cold.