Delhi Minister Atishi urges LG to stop demolition of religious structures

New Delhi: Delhi Minister and senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi Marlena Singh on Sunday urged Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena to withdraw his orders to demolish religious structures in the national capital.

Minister’s request came after a temple and a Mazar were removed on Sunday morning to pave the way for the construction of a flyover. The demolition that took place in northeast Delhi’s Bhajanpura Chowk, was amid heavy police deployment.

The decision to remove the two structures was taken at a “religious committee” meeting a few days ago and a proper dialogue was held with the residents and local leaders, police said.

The minister said in a tweet in Hindi, “LG sir: A few days ago, I had written a letter requesting you to withdraw your decision to demolish temples and other religious structures in Delhi. But today a temple in Bhajanpura was demolished again. I request you again to ensure that temples and other religious structures are not demolished in Delhi. People’s faith is attached to them.”

The AAP leader had written to Saxena on June 22, following a row between locals and the authorities in east Delhi’s Mandawali area when officials allegedly removed the grille encroaching upon the footpath near a temple on June 22.

She added that the former Delhi deputy minister Manish Sisodia had received a file regarding the demolition of religious structures in January this year, but the Lieutenant Governor rejected it, saying that the site plans can be modified.

“But LG sir side-lined his (Sisodia’s) suggestions and instead said that this is a law and order matter. The files pertaining to such structures should be sent directly to him rather than through the elected government,” Atishi said.

Later in the day, AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar addressed a press conference and echoed similar views, and demanded that the decision to demolish temples should be withdrawn.

With inputs from PTI