India / ‘Kejriwal not Natwarlal’: Meenakshi Lekhi to Delhi CM on ration delivery issue

New Delhi: Lok Sabha MP and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Meenakshi Lekhi took a swipe at Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and asked him to stop “conning” the people of the national capital over the ration distribution process. Lekhi compared Kejriwal to an infamous conman Natwarlal and asked him not to keep the people of Delhi in the dark by writing letters to the Centre.

“Your name is Kejriwal and not Natwarlal, so please stop keeping the people in the dark by continuously writing letters to the Centre,” Lekhi said. The MP was referring to Kejriwal’s letter where he had questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the halting of the doorstep delivery of ration.

“People have been made to queue up for ration by the governments in the last 75 years. Sir, let not they remain in ration queues for next 75 years. They will never forgive me or you,” Kejriwal said in his letter to PM Modi.

“We are ready to make whatever changes the central government wants in this scheme. Kindly allow us to deliver ration to the doorstep of people,” Kejriwal further added referring to the earlier dispute that arose following usage of the word Mukhya Mantri in the scheme.

The Mukhya Mantri Ghar Ghar Ration Yojna was renamed Ghar Ghar Ration Yojna. Delhi’s government’s doorstep delivery of ration met a roadblock after the Centre stopped the scheme saying that its approval was not taken. Delhi CM Kejriwal, however, maintained that the Delhi government was not legally bound but it sought Centre’s permission to avoid any dispute.

Lekhi alleged that by not implementing the One Nation One Ration Card scheme the Aam Aadmi Party-led government wants to bring middlemen in the process and make room for corruption. The Union food and public distribution ministry on Saturday claimed that the Delhi government wants to ‘tinker’ with the Centre’s nationally administered programme. It also alleged that the Delhi government would be doing so at the cost of Delhi consumers by charging the cost of milling etc. from them, according to a report by PTI.

BJP leader Vijender Gupta on Sunday also alleged that four lakh fake ration card holders were identified after the Kejriwal government implemented e-PoS system in January 2018 but it never took any action towards weeding them out. Lekhi said if AAP MLAs do not take action against these people then they are also participating in corruption.

“You have been the Chief Minister of Delhi for more than five years. Tell me how many licenses of ration shops you have cancelled, how many people have been sent to jail, how many FIRs have been lodged and what actions you have taken in these years besides writing letters to the Prime Minister. If not done, then it is clear that your MLAs and you yourself are part of the mafia,” the BJP Lok Sabha MP said.