LS polls: For voters in Northeast Delhi, harmony, development in focus

New Delhi, May 17 (PTI) Four years after communal violence jolted northeast Delhi, residents hope the new government would focus on promoting harmony and ensuring development in the area.

According to voters in the Northeast Delhi Lok Sabha constituency, it needs a better sewerage system, improved roads and cleanliness.

Ankur Sharma, brother of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer Ankit Sharma who was killed in the riots, said whichever political party is voted to power should focus on maintaining law and order and peace in the area.

“The memories of the riots haunted us. My parents would often breakdown remembering my brother and when we stepped out, people would talk to us about my brother.

“It was difficult and we moved to Ghaziabad but on May 25 we will cast our vote in Delhi. Whichever party forms the government, be it the BJP or the Congress, it should work towards strengthening the law and order and maintaining harmony among people,” Sharma told PTI.

The Sharma family moved to Ghaziabad two months ago.

Mohammad Wasim, whose house was burned down by rioters in 2020, echoed similar sentiments.

“We managed to flee but could not take our belongings that were reduced to ashes. We pray that we never have to see such a situation again. The rioters were outsiders. As a first-time voter, I will cast my vote for communal harmony and peace,” he said.

As many as 53 people died and around 200 were injured in the February 2020 northeast Delhi riots.

For others, civic issues are the focus.

Rahul Raj, a media professional and a resident of Burari said, “I have been living here for 20 years. The area suffers from connectivity issues and the condition of roads is not good. There is a lack of cleanliness in the area. The issues of unauthorised colonies and drainage are also there.”

He said there is only one government hospital in Burari that opened during the COVID-19 pandemic and there are not enough government schools.

Dilshad Colony resident Anil Rawat said parking is a major issue.

“The lack of proper parking space is a problem. Though we have an MCD parking lot here, most of the people prefer to park their vehicles on roads which leads to congestion,” he said.

The Northeast Delhi constituency has 24,63,159 eligible voters, including over 11.36 lakh women.

It has sizeable Purvanchali and Muslim (20 per cent) populations.

The constituency comprises 10 assembly segments — Burari, Timarpur, Seemapuri, Rohtas Nagar, Seelampur, Ghonda, Babarpur, Gokalpur, Mustafabad and Karawal Nagar.

Northeast Delhi will see a direct contest between two Purvanchalis — sitting BJP MP Manoj Tiwari and Congress’ Kanhaiya Kumar.

Tiwari won the seat in 2014 and 2019 and is eyeing a hat-trick.

In 2019, Tiwari defeated three-time chief minister Sheila Dikshit by a record margin of 3,66,102 votes.

Tiwari said the biggest issue in the Northeast Delhi constituency is traffic congestion and all main roads were decongested during his tenure as MP.

“Areas like Shastri Park Chauraha and the stretch from Shastri Park to Karawal Nagar Pushta have been decongested. Another problem was jams on the Seelampur flyover, which had a single lane and has two lanes now. A flyover was also constructed in Nand Nagari.

“But there are four to five roads that need to be decongested like Sonia Vihar Pushta. The Gamri road also needs to be widened,” Tiwari told PTI.

A central school was constructed in the area and approval has been granted for two more schools. Work on these schools will begin soon, he said.

Congress candidate Kanhaiya Kumar, while filing his nomination papers from the constituency, had said that he wants to provide employment to the youth of the area.

“We want employment for the youth of northeast Delhi. We want relief from GST for shopkeepers. We also want a minimum wage of Rs 400 for labourers. For women, we want to pay them Rs 1 lakh per year,” he had said.

He had said the Congress wants to waive education loans and ensure that farmers get the right price for their produce.

Polling in Northeast Delhi will be held in the sixth round of the seven-phase Lok Sabha elections on May 25.