New Delhi/Ghaziabad: Ahead of the upcoming Delhi assembly elections, the war of words between the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and BJP has intensified with Chief Minister Atishi accusing the Centre of settling "a large number of illegal Rohingyas" in different parts of the national capital.
In a letter written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the Delhi CM targeted Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri over his tweets saying that settling the refugees in Delhi was a "conscious decision" of the BJP-led NDA government. However, Puri accused AAP of indulging in "politics of diversion, false narratives and half-truths".
In her letter to the Home Minister, Atishi cited two tweets by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in 2022 saying the Union government had settled a “large number of illegal Rohingya refugees” in different parts of the national capital by keeping the people and the government of Delhi in the dark.
दिल्ली में रोहिंग्या शरणार्थियों को बसाकर केंद्र सरकार द्वारा दिल्लीवासियों का हक छीनने के मुद्दे पर महत्वपूर्ण प्रेस कॉन्फ्रेंस। LIVE https://t.co/9CjticSebC
— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) December 15, 2024
"This seems to be going on for the past several years. On August 17, 2022, Union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Puri published two tweets that clearly show that it is a 'conscious decision and policy' of the BJP government to settle these refugees in Delhi," the Delhi CM alleged in the letter to Shah.
"From the post of Puri, it seems they were settled into EWS (Economically Backward Class) flats of Bakkarwala. These flats were meant for the poor people of Delhi. It appears that the rights and facilities meant for the people of Delhi are being given away to migrants," she added. The CM said that this move of the central government will “not only affect the law and order of Delhi, but will also strain the limited resources of the city”.
Puri Hits Back
Meanwhile, union minister Hardeep Puri hit back over Delhi CM's allegations over settling the Rohingya refugees in the national capital.
"Aam Aadmi Party continues with its politics of diversion, false narratives and half-truths. Facts and actual position on illegal Rohingya migrants were immediately clarified through a tweet on the same day which they selectively chose to ignore, and continue to do so," Puri wrote in a post on X.
Aam Aadmi Party continues with its politics of diversion, false narratives and half truths. Facts and actual position on illegal Rohingya migrants were immediately clarified through a tweet on the same day which they selectively chose to ignore, and continue to do so.
— Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) December 15, 2024
No… https://t.co/baPpy2TWWT
"No Rohingya migrant has been given a government house in Delhi. In fact, contrary to the drummed-up AAP rhetoric they are actually the ones who play host to the illegal Rohingyas in Delhi, have settled them in large numbers, give them electricity and water, and even pay them Rs 10,000," he added.
The Delhi CM while citing media reports claimed that thousands of Rohingya migrants were crossing the India-Bangladesh border every day without any hindrance. She also questioned how the refugees managed to cross several states without being caught. “Delhi is not close to any international border and is thousands of kilometers away from the Bangladesh border. Therefore, it is surprising that after crossing our borders, how these immigrants reach Delhi by crossing several states without being caught,” she wrote in the letter. She demanded that the list of all the Rohingya refugees “settled by the central government” be shared with the Delhi government, Lieutenant Governor and Delhi Police.
The CM said it was "most shocking" that the BJP-led Union government "settled" these Rohingyas in different parts of Delhi while the "party-appointed" lieutenant governor directed the Delhi Police to conduct a door-to-door survey to identify Rohingyas. “No illegal refugee should be settled in Delhi without the permission of the Delhi government and the public,” she added.
Atishi said that the BJP government had “completely failed to protect our borders”. “If this situation continues, is our country in a position to handle such a large number of refugees? The answer is NO. Then why is the BJP government not doing anything to stop this illegal migration?" she wrote in the letter.
The allegations by Atishi come a day after former CM and AAP Convener Arvind Kejriwal wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah expressing concern over the issue of law and order in Delhi. Kejriwal also sought time to meet Amit Shah to discuss law and order in the capital.
In the run-up to the Delhi Assembly polls due in February 2025, the ruling AAP and BJP have been hitting out at one another over the issue of illegal Rohingya and Bangladeshi people staying in the national capital.
The BJP has already complained to the Election Commission about illegal Rohingyas and Bangladeshis registered as voters in Delhi "at the behest of AAP".
Last week, the Delhi LG Secretariat directed the chief secretary and police commissioner of Delhi to launch a two-month special drive to identify and take strict action against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants residing in the national capital.
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