New Delhi: In a fiery address at Jantar Mantar on Sunday, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal slammed the BJP-led demolition drive in Delhi under the banner of the ‘Ghar-Rozgar Bachao’ movement. Thousands of slum dwellers gathered to oppose what Kejriwal described as a targeted attack on the poor by the newly formed BJP government in Delhi.
Kejriwal accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of betraying the poor with his much-publicised slogan “Jahan Jhuggi, Wahan Makaan”. “What he actually meant was ‘Jahan Jhuggi, Wahan Maidan’,” said Kejriwal. “His guarantees are like fake products, counterfeit and full of lies.”
The former Chief Minister warned that the BJP’s actions would lead to unrest, stating, “A senior BJP leader openly said they would raze all jhuggis, but he forgot, the day 40 lakh jhuggi dwellers take to the streets, BJP will be brought to its knees.”
He criticised the rapid pace of demolitions since the BJP assumed power just five months ago. “I had warned everyone that within a year they would demolish your jhuggis, but who knew they would begin
destroying homes and wrecking Delhi within just five months,” he said. “Every demolished home, every shattered wall is crying out for justice.”
Highlighting the impact on livelihoods, Kejriwal noted, “Wherever jhuggi residents live, they earn their livelihood close by. Once their homes are gone, so are their incomes.”
Other senior AAP leaders echoed the sentiment. AAP MP Sanjay Singh accused BJP of targeting UP-Bihar migrants and labelling them as illegal immigrants. “They lied. PM Modi promised ‘Jahan Jhuggi Wahan Makaan’, but demolished jhuggis instead. Their party should be called ‘Bhartiya Jhoothi Party’,” he said. Leader of Opposition Atishi accused BJP of wanting to “remove the poor” instead of poverty itself. “They want to snatch this land and hand it to their billionaire friends,” she said. “From the courts to Parliament, this fight will go on.”
Gopal Rai, senior AAP leader, gave a stern warning to BJP, “First give us a house, we’ll leave the jhuggi ourselves. But if you demolish without a plan, the poor will march into the Prime Minister’s residence.”
The protest saw a huge turnout despite intense summer heat, with Kejriwal declaring, “AAP is the voice of the poor, and now that voice will rise from every lane
and colony, standing like a wall before BJP’s bulldozers.”
Despite the massive turnout, the protest drew sharp criticism from BJP and Congress. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva termed the rally a “complete flop,” accusing AAP of stoking unrest.
“Kejriwal is a two-faced leader who drove slum dwellers out during COVID, and now pretends to cry for them,” he said. He alleged AAP leaders had incited workers to march to the Prime Minister’s residence, exposing their “anarchic,
Naxalite face.”
Congress Delhi chief Devender Yadav went a step further, accusing AAP and BJP of working hand-in-glove. “Kejriwal never allotted even one of the 45,000 flats built under the Congress-era Rajiv Ratan Awas Yojana,” he said. “He should apologise for colluding with BJP to uproot the poor.”
Yadav launched a 10-point critique of AAP’s slum policy, questioning why Kejriwal’s government dismantled the in-situ housing model, ignored slum dwellers in court, and allowed thousands of flats to fall into disuse. “He’s using the poor for politics, not helping them,” said Yadav. “AAP has made life hell for slum dwellers.”