Delhi air pollution row: Opposition MLAs come to house wearing masks; speaker suspends four

NEW DELHI: Confrontation between BJP and AAP over air pollution escalated in the assembly on Monday as four opposition MLAs were suspended for the remaining three days of the winter session after they disturbed lieutenant governor VK Saxena's address to the house.

During LG's inaugural speech at the year's first session, AAP MLAs entered the house wearing gas masks to protest against severe pollution. Speaker Vijender Gupta ordered their removal, and eventually suspended Sanjeev Jha, Som Dutt, Kuldeep Kumar and Jarnail Singh following a request by BJP's Parvesh Sahib Singh.

Calling the suspension an assault on democratic accountability, leader of the opposition Atishi staged a protest near the Gandhi statue on the assembly premises along with other AAP MLAs. "Delhi has turned into a gas chamber. Children and the elderly are falling ill. But BJP govt is not even ready to discuss pollution," she alleged.


Environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, however, accused AAP of "running away" from a discussion on air pollution despite BJP govt scheduling a debate. "They fear that 11 years of AAP govt misdeeds will be exposed," Sirsa said, alleging that AAP cared more about wearing expensive masks than the health of Delhi residents.

AAP claimed that BJP govt in Delhi did no work in the past 10 months. "Now when we raise the concerns of the people of Delhi, we are thrown out of the house," said Jha, one of the suspended MLAs. "BJP said women will be given Rs 2,500 monthly financial assistance, it did not happen yet. They promised free LPG cylinders on Holi and Diwali, and cylinders subsidised at Rs 500. They claimed there would be no waterlogging, yet 50 people died due to waterlogging incidents. In Oct, they said the Yamuna was clean, but in Dec, environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said people should not go near the Yamuna," Jha alleged.

BJP MP Ramvir Singh Biduri claimed that after 10 years of AAP's "misgovernance", people were beginning to see the positive impact of govt's decisions.

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said Delhi's pollution worsened over 11 years of Arvind Kejriwal's tenure as AAP govt had neither tackled local causes nor helped Punjab farmers curb stubble burning. Claiming that AAP was not serious about any public issue, Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said, "Now that AAP is in opposition, leader of the opposition Atishi is busy in Goa and MLA Gopal Rai in Gujarat for the party's expansion."

Chief minister Rekha Gupta appealed for constructive dialogue, urging both ruling and opposition parties to discharge their responsibilities and engage in meaningful discussions for Delhi's development.