Atishi slams BJP over temple demolition plans: 'Dual face exposed'

NEW DELHI: Delhi chief minister Atishi intensified her criticism of the BJP, accusing the party of showing its "dual face" for its alleged involvement in the planned demolition of temples in the national capital.

Speaking on the matter, Atishi said, "The BJP central government is planning to demolish temples and Buddhist temples in different parts of Delhi. The dual face of BJP is exposed—they claim to protect Hinduism, yet they secretly order the destruction of these sacred places."

Atishi outlined the sequence of events during a press conference, pointing to a November 22 meeting of the Religious Committee. According to her, the committee decided to demolish temples in areas such as West Patel Nagar, Dilshad Garden, Seemapuri, Gokalpuri, New Usmanpur, and Sultanpuri, along with a Buddhist temple in Sundar Nagari. She alleged that these decisions had been approved by Delhi's Lieutenant Governor (LG), Vinai Kumar Saxena.

"Yesterday, the LG’s office told the media that there is no order to demolish temples. But this is a lie," Atishi said. "The minutes of the November 22 meeting clearly document the decision to demolish these religious structures. The LG has approved these recommendations, and officials are now preparing to execute the demolitions."

Atishi argued that these actions bypass the elected government of Delhi, claiming that the BJP has manipulated governance structures to exclude her administration from the decision-making process. "Until last year, the Religious Committee came under the Home Minister of Delhi. Decisions required the approval of the Home Minister. However, the LG ordered that religious place demolitions be treated as law and order issues, placing the committee directly under his authority," she explained.

The chief minister also called attention to the broader implications of the demolition plans, particularly for communities that hold these places of worship in high regard.

"It has been decided by the Religious Committee - on your directions, and with your approval - to demolish multiple religious structures across Delhi. As you can see the list of religious structures to be demolished includes many temples, and Buddhist places of worship that are revered by the Dalit community," the Delhi CM said in a letter to the LG on Tuesday.

'Cheap politics,' says LG's office

The LG's office dismissed Atishi's letter terming it as "cheap politics," and denied any plans to demolish religious structures. The secretariat clarified: "Neither any temples, mosques, churches, nor any other place of worship are being demolished. CM Atishi is attempting to distract from her and her predecessor’s governance failures."

The statement added that strict instructions had been given to the police to prevent politically motivated vandalism. The LG's office cited the peaceful Christmas celebrations in Delhi as evidence of its commitment to maintaining communal harmony.

This clash comes amid escalating political tensions between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the BJP in Delhi, with Atishi repeatedly accusing the LG of acting as a proxy for the BJP, ahead of assembly elections in Delhi which are scheduled for early 2025.