New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) held a massive protest against the BJP and gheraoed civic center and locked its gates against non-payment of salaries to MCD employees. AAP’s North MCD Leader of Opposition Vikas Goel said the BJP-ruled MCD has not given salary to current employees and pension to retired employees for the last three months yet at the behest of the BJP, the police dragged the AAP councillors to the police station, forcibly stopped the dharna.
Goel asked How will MCD employees celebrate Diwali without salary? How can the BJP leaders party at such a time? AAP’s East MCD Leader of Opposition Manoj Tyagi said that the BJP ruled MCD is filling the pockets of private contractors with the hard-earned money of employees. He said that the workers who are engaged in cleaning Delhi day and night, are concerned about the health of the people of Delhi, it is them who are unable to light stoves in their houses today. AAP demands that if the BJP led MCD is not able to pay salaries to the employees, then the people of BJP should resign immediately.
After the protest, the Aam Aadmi Party Leader of Opposition in North Delhi Municipal Corporation Vikas Goel addressed a press conference at the party headquarters. Vikas Goel said, “the BJP ruled MCD has not paid salaries to the employees for the last three months. When preparations for festivals are going on in everyone's house, then there is not even a grain of ration left in the house of MCD employees. How will employees celebrate Diwali without pay? How will their household expenses run? In this protest, today we gheraoed the BJP outside the MCD Headquarters Civic Center. And demanded from the BJP to release the salary and pension of all the employees immediately. Along with this, we locked the gate of the civic center because what is the need to keep it open, when there is no work going on and the employees are not given salary?”
Vikas Goel said, “we had announced an indefinite protest till the employees were not paid their salaries. But like every time, this time also the BJP-ruled MCD started assaulting our councilors with the help of Delhi Police. They were forcibly dragged to the police station and the dharna was forcibly ended. This makes one thing clear that the Bharatiya Janata Party does not want the workers to celebrate the festival. The corporation has been ruled by BJP for the last 15 years. In these 15 years, the Bharatiya Janata Party has exploited the employees of MCD only and only, made false promises to them, misled them. Whenever they contested elections, there is only one thing in their manifesto that we will regularise employees, give them bonuses and pay their salaries on time.”
Goel continued, “There was a huge strike in 2018, the then BJP state president Manoj Tiwari had ended the strike by giving juice to everyone. He promised that all the employees would be regularised, bonuses would be given and all would be paid on time. But nothing happened. After that, there was a strike just last year, then their mayor also made the same promise. But even then nothing happened.”
Goel further said, “now they have crossed the limits. It is the time of Diwali, which is considered to be the biggest festival for Hindus, there is Govardhan Puja, there is Bhai Dooj, then there is Chhath, in such a way there is a tradition in our country that every big and small businessman gives gifts to his employees. Gives bonus, gives sweets. But ruling the MCD, the Bharatiya Janata Party has done the exact opposite. Leave the bonus and sweets, they are not ready to give their due money, even their hard-earned money. They are not getting their salary for two or three months."
"Safai Karamcharis are the ones who sacrificed their lives to clean Delhi during the Corona period, DBC workers are the ones who sanitised door to door during the Corona period and are now doing door-to-door dengue testing, Teachers are the ones who work to build the future of children, the doctors and nurses are the ones who are treating the people of Delhi by risking their lives yet the BJP-ruled MCD has not paid these people for three months. All this while their Mayor parties at a Diwali Milan event at his home. Even today he is doing the Diwali Milan ceremony but is not giving salaries, pensions to the employees. So how will those people celebrate Diwali? Due to this, the workers are compelled to go on strike. No matter what they should get their salaries, the ration should reach their house, they should also celebrate Diwali with pomp. Even today, the employees are on strike at Gate No 3 of the Civic Center,” he added.
According to him, “I want to ask the people of Bharatiya Janata Party that when the children of MCD employees go to bed hungry on Diwali, how can you yourself sleep peacefully and eat sweets during that time. Have you lost your morals, your humanity? I want to directly tell the people of the Bharatiya Janata Party that the Aam Aadmi Party stands with the employees. Give salary to all the employees as soon as possible, give pension to retired employees, give bonuses. Otherwise, you have no moral right to be in power. Resign immediately.”
On the other hand, LOP of East MCD Manoj Tyagi said, “Bharatiya Janata Party has been in MCD for the last 15 years. Despite this, it could not eliminate the problems of MCD. On the one hand, they lag behind in cleanliness rankings and promote privatization. On the other hand, you do not pay salaries to the employees engaged in the service of MCD. This is a matter of great embarrassment. Employees are neither getting salaries nor bonuses. In such a situation, how will these people celebrate the biggest festival of Hindus, the festival of Deepawali? All the leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party are doing Diwali Milan celebrations. Flowers are being showered from place to place, eating sweets, and doing feasts. But the common workers, because of whom these people come to power and rule in it. They fill the pockets of private contractors with the hard-earned money of the same commoners.”
He said, “The Aam Aadmi Party is with the employees and in this regard, all the councillors of the Aam Aadmi Party are protesting outside the civic center. Aam Aadmi Party demands that BJP should give salary to all employees and pension to retired employees at the earliest, otherwise the Aam Aadmi Party will continue its protest. On the call of AAP’s MCD in-charge Durgesh Pathak ji, all the councillors will protest till the BJP announces the salary to the employees of MCD.”
After this, South MCD's LOP Prem Chauhan said, “it is very sad and painful that the BJP ruled MCD is not paying salaries to Safai Karamcharis, DBC employees, teachers, doctors and nurses even during the festive season. For those who are engaged in cleaning Delhi day and night, who are concerned about the health of the people of Delhi, it has become difficult for them to light the stove in their own house. Those employees have not received salaries for three months. For which the BJP ruled in MCD is responsible. If the BJP can’t run the MCD then they should learn from us. Otherwise, after 3 months the public will tell you how MCD is run.”
He said, “even on a festival like Diwali, if they cannot give gifts to their wives and children, they cannot buy sweets, then what is the purpose of such a job? The Aam Aadmi Party always talks about the interest of the common man, so today all the nominated and elected councillors of the Aam Aadmi Party are protesting against the MCD outside the civic center here. Our demand is that the BJP-ruled MCD should pay salaries to all the employees on time and release the previous arrears as soon as possible. We are not sitting here to slander the BJP here and there. All we want is that BJP should give the salary and pension of retired employees to all the employees of MCD so that they too can celebrate Diwali.”
