War of words between AAP govt and L-G over demolition of religious structures

The AAP, meanwhile, alleged that Saxena, as the L-G, “directly controls” the Religious Committee empowered to undertake the removal of religious structures in Delhi and that officers who were part of the committee were appointed by the Centre.

“Kejriwal himself had on 08.02.2023, recommended the demolition of 9 temples in different parts of Delhi. Kejriwal and the then minister (Home) Manish Sisodia had approved the recommendations of the Religious Committee for demolition of these 9 temples,” the L-G Secretariat said in a note. Of the nine temples, the note added, seven were situated in Karawal Nagar and the other two in New Usmanpur, it added.

On June 23, 2016, “then minister (Home) Satyendra Jain had approved the demolition of eight temples in different parts of Delhi”, it further said.

“…on 17.07.2017, Satyendra Jain had rejected the recommendations of the Religious Committee for demolition of 2 unknown mazaars citing ‘religious sentiments and sensitivities’, despite the fact that the Committee had found no historical significance of the said structures and that only 5-10 persons visited those mazaars every week,” the note said.

An official in the Secretariat said, “…given the facts, those who make allegations against the L-G Secretariat, should retract their statements, apologise and refrain from indulging in cheap politics.”

The AAP, meanwhile, sought to know whether the Principal Secretary (Home), who heads the Committee, had been appointed by the BJP-led Centre and whether this body had approved the demolition of “five temples and one Buddhist structure”.

“Did the file of the Religious Committee bypass the Minister of Home and the Delhi Chief Minister to reach the L-G? Did the L-G approve this file?” it asked.

“It is very clear that these officers have been appointed by the Central government, and the L-G directly controls the Religious Committee. It is amply clear that the L-G has been caught red-handed trying to order demolitions of temples through members directly appointed by him in the Religious Committee on the order of 22.11.2024. Therefore, the L-G is now trying to distract attention,” the party alleged.