AAP, BJP slug it out on slums, ‘infiltrators’

A fresh political slugfest erupted between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday with senior leaders from both ends accusing each other of reneging on promises made during the run-up to previous state and general elections, creating fake identity cards, allowing illegal Bangladeshi nationals into the Capital, and of inadequate security on international borders — at four different press conferences in Delhi.

Union petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri accused the AAP government of failing to deliver on key promises made in the run-up assembly elections in 2020. Responding to Puri’s allegations, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh demanded that the BJP first address the numerous promises the party allegedly reneged on, including tackling black money, doubling farmers’ income, generating 20 million job opportunities and taming inflation.

Also Read: AAP, BJP tussle intensifies over ‘voter list manipulation’ in Delhi

The parties also continued their extensive poll campaigns on Sunday, particularly making efforts to win over the 1.5 million voters who live in slums in the Capital. Speaking at a slum cluster at Shakur Basti in north Delhi, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal alleged that the BJP plans to demolish the slums in the city and “hand over the land to builders”.

Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva said that in the last 10 years, Kejriwal has left 50,000 flats of the Rajiv Awas Yojana in areas like Narela to decay but not a single flat has been provided to people living in slums. Speaking at an east Delhi slum, he said every poor person knows that “PM Modi has provided millions of houses in villages and cities”.

At the press conference, Puri called the AAP a “factory of liars”. “In 2020, [AAP convener] Arvind Kejriwal gave 10 guarantees, including 24-hour free electricity supply, Delhi to be free from high-tension wires, better health care for all, government schools, more than 500km of the Metro network, free buses for women and students, controlling air pollution, cleaning of the Yamuna river, and to plant more than 20 million trees... People come and make such statements, and when they are asked questions [about the status of these projects], they try to divert attention,” Puri said, adding that “They are a factory of liars. There is a fundamental difference between the BJP and them; whatever we say, we do”.

Also Read: Ramesh Bidhuri refutes AAP's 'BJP CM face' claim: 'Arvind Kejriwal accepted...'

Singh countered the allegations and said that the AAP government in Delhi provided 200 units of free electricity, gave 50,000 government jobs, and built excellent schools, hospitals, and Mohalla Clinics. “AAP government works for the people and will continue to do so, but the Modi government works for Adani,” he said, adding that in contrast, the BJP government at the Centre and states has only increased corruption, inflation, and black money in the country.

“Hardeep Puri should tell us where the black money they promised to bring back from abroad has gone. Did every household in India receive ₹15 lakh as promised? The BJP has not only lied to the country but has also betrayed India. They have only increased inflation, black money, and corruption in the country,” Singh said at a press conference.

Separately, senior BJP leader Smriti Irani accused the AAP of what she described as a “major revelation related to national security” involving the creation of fake ID cards for alleged Bangladeshi infiltrators. Irani directly accused two AAP MLAs, Mohinder Goyal and Jai Bhagwan Upkar, of orchestrating a conspiracy to create fake Aadhaar cards.

“Who are those infiltrators who want to weaken the democratic structure of our country by making fake voter cards?” Irani said at a press conference at the BJP headquarters. She claimed that a case was registered at the Sangam Vihar police station in Delhi in December 2024 after complaints of fake Aadhaar, PAN, and voter ID cards came to light.

“Two AAP MLAs, Mohinder Goyal and Jai Bhagwan Upkar, have been involved in the conspiracy to make fake cards for Bangladeshi infiltrators. The Delhi Police issued notice twice to these MLAs and their staff but neither of them has appeared before the investigating agencies so far, preventing the full truth from coming to light,” Irani alleged.

Launching a scathing attack in response to Irani, AAP chief spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar said that if infiltrators had entered the country through the international borders, it was because Union home minister Amit Shah had “failed to protect the country’s borders”.

“We hear about the Rohingya in UP, Gujarat, Haryana... if they can come to Delhi after crossing so many states, it shows that Amit Shah failed to protect our borders. In Delhi, Shah could not save internal borders. Delhi’s law and order directly come under Shah and border security also comes under him,” Kakkar said. She added that the notices issued to the MLAs were a different matter — “a tactic the BJP retorts to whenever it is rattled”.

“Whenever BJP is rattled, it files fake cases against our leaders. Everyone knows that border security is under Amit Shah. Role of BJP in settling of Rohingya should be probed,” Kakkar said at a separate media address.

Allegations were also made against the AAP that the party delayed the expansion of the Metro network in Delhi but the AAP said its work was speaking for itself.

“Every time we tried to start a phase of Metro, these people didn’t give their part. Despite these issues the central government facilitated the growth of the Metro network. We have 1,000km of Metro — third best in the world, and soon we will be second,” Puri said, attributing these developments to the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

Singh said: “Our work speaks loudly in the hearts of the people. Take Punjab, for example we provided 300 units of free electricity, restored water to 30 dried-up canals, built excellent schools and hospitals, set up Mohalla Clinics, and provided 50,000 government jobs. The AAP government in Punjab has delivered on these promises. I have listed so many achievements, but can the BJP list even one promise they have fulfilled?”

Both parties have been trading barbs, which have gotten personal too, as poll campaigns strengthen and voting day nears. The 70-member Delhi assembly will go to the polls on February 5, with the counting scheduled for February 8. The AAP, which won 67 seats in 2015 and 62 in the 2020 polls, is seeking a third consecutive term. The BJP, which secured three seats in 2015 and eight in 2020, is mounting an aggressive campaign to wrest control of the Capital, while the Congress has drawn a blank in the last two elections.