Atishi blames poor monsoon prep, seeks Verma’s removal

new delhi: Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Atishi, wrote to CM Rekha Gupta, urging her to remove PWD Minister Parvesh Verma from his post, after a motorist died due to a tree fall. Calling it a “preventable tragedy”, Atishi stated that the PWD has “failed in its most basic duty to safeguard lives” and that Verma was “directly responsible” for the death.

Atishi reported that a tree fell on Hansraj Sethi Marg during heavy rains, injuring a man and a woman.

The man died, while the woman remains in critical condition. She argued that the incident was not a natural disaster but the result of inadequate monsoon preparedness.

Citing other examples, she referred to the death of a toddler who drowned in an open sewer and eight fatalities in the Jaitpur wall collapse, both of which she attributed to heavy rainfall and administrative negligence. “Each was a preventable tragedy that could have been avoided with foresight, infrastructure readiness, and decisive governance,” she said.

Atishi concluded that the Public Works Department had failed in its responsibility to maintain the city’s safety and infrastructure.

She said PWD Minister Parvesh Verma should take moral responsibility and be removed from the Cabinet, arguing that such action was necessary to restore public trust.

In response, the BJP said it was “unfortunate” that Atishi, now calling for a minister’s resignation over a single death from a fallen tree, had not expressed condolences during her own tenure when nearly 50 people, including three civil service aspirants, died in similar incidents last year.