AAP, BJP behind Delhi sanitation workers’ strike: Maken

New Delhi, Jan 9 (IANS) The Congress on Monday attacked the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party over the strike of the sanitation workers in the city and accused the city government of reducing the civic bodies' allocations.

"It is sad that the sanitation workers of the Municipal Corporations of Delhi have resorted to strike for the fifth time in two years after the AAP government came to power in Delhi, demanding their salaries and arrears," Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken told reporters here.

"The East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) sanitation workers have gone on strike to get their wages and arrears due to the tussle between the BJP government at the Centre and the AAP government in Delhi," Maken alleged.

Maken's remarks came after the East DMC workers went on strike again, demanding their pending salaries.

The Congress leader said the party's Vice President Rahul Gandhi is ready to fight for the cause of the MCD workers if the salaries and arrears of the EDMC workers are not paid forthwith.

Maken said the AAP government in Delhi and the BJP-led central government have reduced the annual plan outlay for the MCDs.

Elaborating, Maken said: "When the Congress was in power in Delhi, in its 2013-14 budget, the government had allocated Rs 1,881.35 crore to the MCDs, out of a total annual plan outlay of Rs 16,000 crore -- which was 11.76 per cent of the total budget."

"And when Delhi was under President's Rule in 2014-15, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, presenting the Delhi budget, had allocated Rs 1,817.1 crore to the MCDs out of the total plan outlay of Rs 17,700 crore -- 10.27 per cent of the total budget. But the AAP government, in its 2015-16 annual plan outlay of Rs 19,000 crore, allocated Rs 1,661.1 crore -- which was only 8.74 per cent of the total budget outlay for Delhi," he said.

"And out of the total budget outlay of Rs 20,600 crore in 2016-17, the Delhi government allocated only Rs 1,712.5 to the MCDs, which was just 8.31 per cent of the total budget allocation," the Congress leader said.

Maken also said that the AAP government has not implemented the Fourth Delhi Finance Commission report (which was presented way back in March 2013) even though Delhi Finance Minister Manish Sisodia had tabled the report on December 2, 2015, in the Delhi assembly.

He said: "It was very strange that without implementing the report of the Fourth Delhi Finance Commission, the Delhi government announced the setting up of the Fifth Delhi Finance Commission in June 2016."

He also criticised the Delhi government for spending crores of rupees on advertisements. "On the one hand, the MCD sanitation workers have not been getting their salaries and arrears, while on the other hand, the Delhi government has been spending manifold on its publicity."

"Rs 14.50 crore was spent for Delhi government's publicity in 2014-15, the amount went up to Rs 127.18 crore in 2015-16 by the AAP government. In 2016-17, the amount for publicity was further increased to Rs 207.73 crore," the Delhi Congress leader said.