AAP govt in Delhi fighting for people, not for personal gain: Manish Sisodia

New Delhi: At loggerheads with the Delhi Lt Governor and angry at what it has termed the “dictatorial attitude” of the Centre, the ruling AAP on Tuesday said its fight was for the people and against corruption, which it claimed has “heavily come down” during its 100 days in power in New Delhi. [caption id=“attachment_2262750” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia. PTI[/caption] At its ‘Janta ki Cabinet, Janta ke Beech’ event to mark the completion of 100 days of AAP government in Delhi, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said their biggest achievement lay in curbing corruption in the city, which had also seen them end the “transfer posting industry” in New Delhi. “Yes, we are fighting, but we are also working. We are not fighting for personal gains, but for the people’s rights, their benefit, and against corruption. “If the public would not have given us more than 36 seats, hen we would not have completed 100 days. We are here to tell the people of the city what we are doing to fulfil the duty given to us by them,” said Sisodia. Talking about AAP’s stand against corruption, Sisodia took a jibe at corrupt officials, saying that they are “courageous” as those caught taking bribes would be sacked. “Corruption has heavily come down in the city. So far, 51 such courageous officers were arrested for taking bribe. Earlier, honest officers were called courageous, but now corrupt officers are being courageous in taking bribes as the government is so strict against them,” he said. Sisodia also said that the AAP government had approached Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his support in the fight against corruption. “We went to meet the prime minister before taking oath and told him that people have given him and us an historic chance through a full majority. Let’s work together in fighting corruption,” he said. Referring to the “transfer posting industry” in Delhi, the deputy chief minister said, “I am in charge of service department, which is responsible for the posting of officers in Delhi government. Many people approached me for posting as SDM in the Saket and Mehrauli areas. I got nine such cases within a month. “As I was not aware of it, I enquired with my team, who told me that at the SDM-level, one can make maximum money in the revenue department at these locations. “I decided not to appoint corrupt officials but deployed new, honest officers. Sub-registrar used to pay Rs 40 lakh for a posting for a year. If a man is paying Rs 40 lakh for his posting, then he will only take bribe.” The Delhi deputy chief minister also claimed that, earlier, some ministers used to escalate the cost of Rs 100 crore projects to Rs 120 crore by incorporating their share. But the AAP government aims to create infrastructure most efficiently and at the cheapest cost, Sisodia said. “We have also put a stop to raids on traders and businessmen. Officers used to make raids and take bribes from traders who, in return, were reluctant to pay their taxes to the government. “But in 55 days in the new financial year, we have earned Rs 2,924 crore whereas an earlier government could only collect Rs 2,088 crore in the same period. So, we have increased our revenue collections by Rs 836 crore in only 55 days,” he said. Sisodia claimed that his government was also keeping a tab on tax evasion. He blamed cable operators and said that they collect subscription from each home but do not pay taxes. “We have found that Rs 233 crore was collected by cable operators from individuals, but they have not paid taxes to the government in the last three years,” Sisodia said. The deputy chief minister, who also holds charge as finance minister, said that the AAP government had also gone to the public with its participatory budget meetings, which have so far been held in 11 Assembly constituencies in Delhi. Sisodia said that by next year the exercise would be extended to all the 70 Assembly seats. Talking about the Arvind Kejriwal government’s performance, he said the water bill has come down and that even the government had conserved rainwater. “We have started giving 80 per cent discount for sewage and water connection for three months. Earlier, one time fee was very high, but we made it practical. We will start holding camps in unauthorised colonies to promote and give connections at discounted rates,” Sisodia said. He further announced that government has made ready-to-use sewage treatment plants functional in the Dwarka and Bawana areas which, however, are lying unused to favour the tanker mafia. The government is also working on reusing treated water and has started mapping of unauthorised areas. In the next two weeks, they will start registry of such colonies, he said. PTI