AIIMS-like hospital, pucca houses for slum dwellers among BJP East Delhi candidate’s promises

New Delhi, May 2 (PTI) A mega hospital on the lines of AIIMS in the trans-Yamuna area and flats to slum dwellers will be among his priorities, if he wins the election, says BJP candidate from East Delhi Lok Sabha seat Harsh Deep Malhotra.

Malhotra, who is pitted against AAP’s Kuldeep Kumar, a reserved candidate, believes voters of the constituency will prefer merit over caste.

“We will try to give a central government’s hospital on the line of Safdarjung or AIIMS to east Delhi so that the people of the area get better treatment as private hospitals are very expensive and everyone cannot afford it. I think this is very important.

“My aim would be to provide flats to the people living in slums under the Prime Minister’s ‘jahan jhuggi wahan makan’ scheme. You find drain water on the roads everywhere in such areas. With this scheme, they would get better homes, roads, and drinking water for a better life,” Malhotra, a former mayor, said.

The 62-year-old alleged that the Arvind Kejriwal government has done nothing to clean Yamuna River despite taking Rs 3,000 crore from the central government.

“Today, the condition of the Yamuna is such that we cannot go to the river to celebrate our festivals. This is also one of my priorities, since the Yamuna is a symbol of our culture,” Malhotra, who was born in Shahdara and has been with the BJP since 1994, said.

The former ABVP member said there should be a big college in the area and metro connectivity should be improved.

Malhotra, who owns a printing press, asserted that caste will not be a factor in who wins the election as he believes that people will choose “merit” over any factional loyalty.

“The AAP’s candidate is an MLA from Kondali and he has not given even basic amenities to the people of the area. The condition of roads is very bad. He has been exposed and people of the national capital do not care about the caste of the candidate. They will vote on merit only,” he said.

Malhotra also alleged that the bail pleas of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodia, and former minister Satyendar Jain were rejected because they are corrupt.

“The liquor policy had to be scrapped since there was a huge corruption in it. For the last two years, I have been asking questions to the CM and his ministers that if the policy was right, then why they took it back. The commission of liquor vendors was two per cent. Why was it increased to 12 per cent?” he asked.

Asked if he thinks that Kejriwal’s jailing may help generate a wave of sympathy in favour of the party, Malhotra said none of the AAP MLAs can face the public and give an account of their work.

“… not even a single person has the calibre to go in front of people and tell them what they have done in the last 10 years. Where are these MLAs?” he said, as he accused the party of indulging in nepotism in politics.

In Kejriwal’s absence, his wife Sunita has been campaigning for the party and has taken out a number of roadshows so far.

Malhotra said the alliance between Congress and AAP is not natural and wondered why no such pact is there in Punjab.

Malhotra is the current general secretary of Delhi BJP. He was a mayor of East Delhi Municipal Corporation from 2015 to 2016.