New Delhi, Sep 27 — Delhi BJP Spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said that the “slapping” incident that took place in the Tilak Nagar Assembly constituency on Sunday afternoon is unfortunate and, as PWD Minister Parvesh Verma himself has said, it should not have happened.
However, it is also important to understand the circumstances under which the incident took place.
The Delhi BJP Spokesperson said that since last week, Aam Aadmi Party MLA from Tilak Nagar Assembly constituency, Jarnail Singh, had been raising certain personal complaints regarding the contractor working on the road being constructed in Vikaspuri and had been pressuring officials to arrange a meeting with him.
When the contractor did not meet the MLA, he started putting pressure through videos on social media. This also came to the notice of Minister Parvesh Verma, following which he decided to conduct an administrative inspection of the site.
While proceeding towards Vikaspuri, Minister Parvesh Verma, as a matter of propriety, called AAP MLA Jarnail Singh and requested him to meet at the site. When the MLA did not arrive, the Minister called him again. The MLA then arrived with around 50 AAP workers and started behaving in an indecent and uncivilised manner, said Kapoor.
As a matter of official protocol and propriety, Minister Verma had invited MLA Jarnail Singh to join the inspection visit, but the MLA created a commotion by resorting to mob politics, said Kapoor.
The Delhi BJP Spokesperson said that if the Minister had wanted, he too could have brought 100–200 workers and raised slogans against the MLA. However, he chose the democratic approach of meeting the MLA and finding a solution to the issue, he said.
Instead, MLA Jarnail Singh, displaying an uncivilised form of political conduct, spoke to the PWD Minister in an inappropriate manner and also got his accompanying workers to behave similarly.
When the PWD Minister was walking towards his vehicle, one of MLA Jarnail Singh’s aides and others surrounded him and used abusive language. After hearing the abusive remarks, Minister Parvesh Verma became agitated, and the unfortunate incident took place, Kapoor said.
The Delhi BJP Spokesperson said that the entire incident appears to have been a well-planned conspiracy by MLA Jarnail Singh; otherwise, why did he take 45 minutes to arrive at a government inspection despite being informed in advance, and why did he bring a crowd along with him?
The Delhi BJP Spokesperson said that what happened in Vikaspuri on Sunday has itself been termed wrong by the PWD Minister, and we all regret it.
However, MLA Jarnail Singh should also explain why, despite being informed in advance by the Minister, he arrived 45 minutes late and why he came with a crowd, said Kapoor.
The manner in which MLA Jarnail Singh deliberately provoked the BJP Minister by bringing a crowd reminds us of how former Delhi Chief Minister and AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal, through a similar conspiracy, had got the Delhi Chief Secretary and even his own party’s MP assaulted, said Kapoor.