AAP accuses BJP of targeting Purvanchali community

Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh has condemned the BJP for allegedly targeting the Purvanchali community in Delhi. Singh accused the BJP of orchestrating a campaign under the guise of an ‘encroachment drive’ to harass children, demolish homes, and strip livelihoods of families originating from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.Singh criticised the BJP for a ‘calculated campaign’ that he claimed was using administrative measures to cover up for its discriminatory actions against the Purvanchali population. ““The BJP is using the excuse of an encroachment drive to harass hard-working street vendors and shopkeepers from Purvanchal,” said Singh.

“We will take to the streets for a direct confrontation if the BJP continues these disgraceful acts,” Singh said. “Stop insulting the people of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar by calling them Bangladeshis. If you continue targeting children, demolishing homes, and bulldozing lives, there will be severe consequences,” he said.

Singh also took a jibe at the recent orders allegedly issued by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) under the BJP’s influence, which, he claimed, specifically targeted Purvanchali children and families. The orders reportedly called for the identification of "illegal Bangladeshi migrants" in municipal schools and instructed MCD officials to remove encroachments by these supposed migrants. Additionally, it was alleged that the Public Health Department was ordered to prevent the issuance of birth certificates to such persons.

Singh further criticised BJP president JP Nadda, who in Parliament referred to Purvanchalis as "Bangladeshis" and “Rohingyas” and vowed to cancel their votes. He questioned the BJP's commitment to address illegal migration, citing their failure to act on the settlement of Rohingya refugees in Delhi's Bakkarwala area, where they are reportedly provided with UNHCR IDs and police protection.

... In response, BJP MP throws up challenge

Following AAP's recent criticism of the BJP for allegedly targeting the Purvanchali community, BJP MP and former Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari launched a scathing attack on former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh. In a press conference moderated by media chief Praveen Shankar Kapoor, Tiwari said, "We challenge Arvind Kejriwal and Sanjay Singh to give a clear answer within 24 hours on whether the votes of illegal infiltrators, like the Bangladeshi and Rohingya migrants in Delhi, should be removed or not."

In response to Sanjay Singh's recent comments on a letter from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), which Singh claimed targeted Purvanchalis, Tiwari clarified that the letter did not mention Purvanchali residents. "Sanjay Singh’s repeated references to Purvanchal are aimed at creating division and regionalism in Delhi," he asserted.

Tiwari accused the AAP leadership of pretending to respect Purvanchalis. He pointed to a 2019 statement by Kejriwal, in which the Delhi CM allegedly claimed that people from Purvanchal travel to Delhi on ₹500 tickets and avail free treatment worth Rs 5 lakh, before returning to their states. "This is how Kejriwal has repeatedly insulted the Purvanchali community. Such comments undermine their hard work and dignity," Tiwari said.