AAP questions BJP’s ‘silence’ on tree felling in Ridge area

New Delhi, Jul 4 (PTI) The Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday questioned the BJP’s silence over the “illegal” felling of trees in the ridge area, and said the saffron party’s stand on Delhi’s pollution is just “politics”.

Addressing a press conference, AAP senior leader Jasmine Shah said that since the issue has surfaced, the BJP and Lt Governor VK Saxena have maintained “silence” over it.

There was no immediate reaction from BJP or the LG Office.

He said that on one hand, the Kejriwal government planted crores of trees in the last nine years to reduce pollution, closed coal-powered thermal power plants, provided 24-hour electricity to Delhiites and brought the best Electric Vehicle (EV) policy in the country. On the other hand, the BJP is cutting trees in cities and mountains in the name of development.

“A few days ago, an incident of illegal cutting of 1,100 trees came to light in the Chhatarpur Ridge area of Delhi. This ridge area is the most sensitive area of Delhi, it is called the lungs of Delhi. Despite this, the central government agency, DDA cut down 1,100 trees overnight in February 2024 without the permission of the Supreme Court,” he claimed.

Shah added that the Delhi government has formed a fact finding committee of three ministers, so that it can be known on whose orders and under whose pressure these trees were cut.

“Today when people from the Supreme Court to the whole country are speaking on this incident and raising questions on it, then the BJP and the Delhi LG are completely silent on this matter,” he said.

“The BJP, which has not done anything against pollution in its states, also always sheds crocodile tears on the pollution of Delhi. It is surprising here that the BJP has become silent on the incident of cutting 1100 trees in the Ridge area of Delhi,” he said.

The Fact Finding Committee of Delhi, formed a week ago, is continuously sending notices to the Forest Department officials and asking for the report, but the officers are not bringing the file, he alleged.

“Because all these officers come under the LG. Therefore, there is definitely pressure from above on them. The BJP should tell who is pressurising the officials of the Forest Department of the Delhi Government?” Shah asked

“If BJP does not answer these questions within 24 hours, it will become clear that this entire conspiracy has been hatched by BJP and it is the BJP which is putting pressure on these officers,” he said.

In an act of defiance, the principal secretary of Environment and Forest Department on Monday had questioned the formation of the fact-finding committee of the Delhi government, claiming it violated rules and could lead to contempt of the Supreme Court.

The committee, comprising ministers Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Imran Hussain, was formed as per a decision taken in a meeting of the Delhi government ministers on June 29 to look into cutting of 1,100 trees in the Southern Ridge area by the DDA allegedly without required permission.