Houses for poor being sold to ineligible people, says AAP; BJP, DDA call allegation 'baseless'

New Delhi: Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Saturday alleged a scam in the housing for the poor scheme and said that the DDA housing units meant for slum dwellers in the city were sold to ineligible individuals.

Bharadwaj, who made the allegations in a press conference, said the "scam" could not have happened without the consent of the Lieutenant Governor.

"These flats cannot be sacrificed to corruption without the consent of the Central Government's DDA. Such a big scam and corruption were happening right under the nose of the BJP L-G, and it is not possible that Lieutenant Governor Vinay Saxena was not aware of it," Bharadwaj said.

Responding to the allegation, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva accused the minister from the Aam Aadmi Party of spreading misinformation against central agencies.

DDA also, in a statement, termed the accusations "patently false" and bereft of facts.

"Not a single flat/dwelling unit in the Kalkaji Slum Rehabilitation project has been allotted to an ineligible beneficiary, and DDA has full-proof technology-enabled systems in place to ensure that no fraudulent allotment or sale is made," the agency that oversees housing in Delhi said.

It said that a preliminary inquiry by it has revealed the involvement of some black marketers associated with a "particular political party." These people were working at the behest of a leader from that political party with the sole purpose of "defaming the DDA" and its "hugely popular" and successful Slum Rehabilitation scheme, it said.

The DDA will pursue the matter with police and also take recourse to judicial remedies if required, it added.

Bharadwaj, in the press conference, said, "The BJP is always troubled by the poor and stands against them. When free electricity and water were given, the BJP opposed it. Now these flats, which were meant for the poor, are being given in black to other people." The AAP leader also called for an independent investigation by sitting judge from the high court or Supreme Court into the matter.

"If the ACB or CBI investigate, it will likely be covered up, as these agencies work under the LG and Central Government. So, this matter should be investigated by a sitting judge from the High Court or Supreme Court to ensure a transparent inquiry," the minister said.

Sachdeva, in his turn, asked Bharadwaj why the Arvind Kejriwal government left to decay 40,000 flats built in Narela and Bawana under the Rajiv Awas Yojana during the Sheila Dikshit's government.

He also asked Bhardwaj to reveal the number of houses allocated in the past 10 years by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board to the homeless.