AAP protests against Centre’s notice to demolish temple in Delhi

New Delhi, April 24 (Agency) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday protested against the Union Government’s notice to demolish a temple situated in a South Delhi based locality. AAP MLA Atishi who led the protest said the Centre has put a notice on the temple based in Sriniwaspuri terming it an “unauthorized construction” and has asked the inhabitants to vacate its premises. She also shared the notice issued by the Union Ministry of Urban Affairs on her Twitter account. According to the notice, the religious edifice was erected on government property without permission. The notice stated that the land must be abandoned within seven days or the construction will be dismantled. The AAP MLA accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led government of using the threat of bulldozers to extort the public.

“We will not allow BJP to demolish the temple; we are standing here with the people of Sriniwaspuri and we will fight back. No matter how much force BJP puts in, AAP will not allow bulldozers to run over a single temple in Delhi. BJP is using the threat of bulldozers to extort the common man but now their Gunda Raj has reached to an extent where they are not even sparing the temples,” she said. Atishi said the AAP will continue its protest until the central government reverses its demolition order. “This protest will continue until we can be sure that this sacred temple faces no threat from the BJP. This Neelkanth Mandir is a symbol of faith for thousands of people and was not established yesterday. It has been here for decades, and to issue a baseless demolition notice against this ancient symbol is blatant injustice and sacrilegious,” the senior leader of AAP said.