Delhi government defends Sheila Dikshit, says no role in awarding CWG tenders

New Delhi, Aug 8 : Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had no role in awarding tenders regarding the XIX Commonwealth Games, Delhi Education Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said today.

The statement comes close on the heels of reports regarding the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) indicting Ms Dikshit and jailed former Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi for serious lapses and irregularities in the infrastructure projects, bidding process for procurement of different Games-related items and several instances of wasteful expenditure.

"We have gone through the CAG's report. Neither the Chief Minister nor any political functionary has been indicted in it," Mr Lovely said in a press conference here.

The 743-page report has accused various ministries of the Delhi government of irregularities and lapses in the Games, held from October 3-14 last year in the national capital.

Ms Dikshit, who had maintained her innocence, told mediapersons yesterday that if the Public Accounts Committee finds anyone guilty, action will be taken against them.

She has been stressing on the PAC to study the CAG report to find any doubtful pecuniary actions made by her government in the Commonwealth Games bungle.

Besides the Delhi Government, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and other ministries and various agencies including the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Municipal Corporation of Delhi(MCD), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and Public Works Department(PWD) have been blamed for the entire mess in the sporting extravaganza, in which 4,336 athletes and 2,115 officials representing 71 countries participated.

Remove Sheila, Gill & Kalmadi before CWG: BJP

New Delhi, Aug 3 (UNI) The BJP today demanded removal of Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, Union Minister MS Gill and Commonwealth Games Organising Committee Chief Suresh Kalmadi from their posts and formation of a new team for proper conduction
of the Games.

''The Chief Minister, Sports Minister and CWG Organising Committee's Chairman should be removed for their total failure in preparing for the Games,'' Delhi BJP Chief Vijender Gupta said at a press conference here.

After the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) report had exposed the high-level corruption in the run up to the Games, the government should take affective and concrete step to address the complaints, he said.

''Even after the CVC assessment report, the Prime Minister has said everything related to the Games is going well. This shows how casual they are towards 'national pride','' Mr Gupta said.

To a query that at a time when only 60 days are left for the mega sporting event the BJP's demand of the removal of the three would cause further delay, he told UNI, ''They are corrupt officials. If the genuine ones will come, the work will surely be done in a better way.''

The BJP today issued a 'white paper' on the corruption and delay of projects in the Games.

Sheila will have to go to jail after CWG: BJP

New Delhi, Jul 31 (UNI) Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit will have to go to jail if charges of corruption and irregularities in the works for the coming Commonwealth Games detected by the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) were proved, BJP said today.

''Following the CVC assessment report, chances are that the Chief Minister will have to go to jail after the Games are over,'' BJP state president Vijender Gupta told reporters here.

Charging Ms Dikshit with ''emotionally blackmailing'' Delhi citizens in the name of upholding national pride in the Games, he came down heavily on her for her comments ''Do you want me to go to jail?'' when she was asked yesterday whether she was ready to take responsibility for adverse assessment made by the CVC.

Condemning Ms Dikshit for her alleged ''irresponsible attitude'', Mr Gupta said she would have to reply all the charges against her and her government made in the CVC report. ''It is a clear case of established crime and corruption in organising the Commonwealth Games.''

Referring to the alleged money laundering by the Games Organising Committee which transferred over Rs 2 crore to a London-based firm A M Films, he said there were
many more such issues which have not been exposed till now.

Sheila says unaware of CVC report about CWG irregularities

New Delhi, Jul 30 (UNI) Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today denied knowledge of any Central Vigilance Commission's (CVC) assessment report exposing allegedly corrupt officials in the street lights upgradation for the Commonwealth Games even when a CBI probe into the case has been sought by the Commission.

''I am completely unaware of any CVC report. When it will reach us, it will be taken care of,'' Ms Dikshit told mediapersons today, a few hours after the Commission requested the CBI to register corruption cases against the MCD officials allegedly
involved in the 'shady deals'.

The assessment report of the CVC, prepared after several complaints of corruption poured in, specifies 16 projects amounting to nearly Rs 2,000 crore, where procedural violations, corruption and clear signs of 'official' collusion for benefit have been found. Of these, six projects were of the Public Works Department (PWD), three of the MCD, two each of Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Delhi Development Authority (DDA), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and one of RITES.

In the street lighting case alone, the contractor, who won the bid on the basis of 'lowest price quote' was later allowed to raise the contract amount in order to milch profits for himself and officials involved, thereby fleecing the exchequer of tens of crores of rupees, as per CVC findings.

CM unsure of meeting Aug 31 deadline for CWG-related work

New Delhi, Jul 30 (UNI) With just two months left for the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, the Chief Minister is still not sure about the completion of work on time.

Referring to the deadline of August 31 for the completion of the Games related projects, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today said it could be shifted further by around a week.

''There are chances of overlapping of work by seven to eight days after August 31 and so the time needed by the agencies will be given,'' she told mediapersons.

In addition, she said the work on Shivaji Stadium, which will be used as a training venue for hockey, is also unlikely to be completed till the Games start. ''Since it is a practice stadium, so it is not going to harm the Games,'' Ms Dikshit said.

The stadium was supposed to have been ready by June 30, according to New Delhi Municipal Council's (NDMC) own deadline.

However, the Chief Minister claimed that all the works were going on time and will hopefully be completed before September. ''All the finishing touches and small left overs will be done in September,'' she said.

To a query regarding inconvenience being caused to the locals due to the Games-related work and the unclean look the national capital is bearing, Ms Dikshit said in such situation when so many mega projects were being carried out simultaneously, it was quite natural that during the execution the city was giving an unkempt look. ''It is just a matter of few days...We have been taking weekly monitoring of all agencies involved in construction and also ensuring their coordination,'' she said.

The Chief Minister said that 16000 tonnes of major debris has already been cleared by the agencies till now. ''All the rest, consisting of major quantity, will surely be
cleared by August 10. Whatever small ones which will be left, we will see what could be done for it,'' she said.

She added that the work of street-scaping having a large component of horticultural development along the roads was planned in a manner so as to make the plantation component coincide with the monsoon.

BJP demands Rajkumar Chauhan's immediate dismissal

New Delhi, Jul 29 (UNI) The Delhi BJP today demanded immediate dismissal of Cabinet Minister Rajkumar Chauhan after the Commissioner of Commercial Taxes admitted that the minister protected tax evaders and asked for a CBI enquiry against him.

Commissioner of Commercial Taxes Jalaj Srivastava admitted before the Lokayukta that during the raid on Tivoli resort, PWD minister Chauhan had directed him through his
private phone that the raid should be stopped immediately.

In response, the Lokayukta has ordered the minister to appear before him on August 16.

In a confidential letter written to Finance Minister Ashok Walia, Mr Srivastava said Chauhan was protecting the tax evaders and the officials performing their duties honestly were being threatened of being punished.

Delhi BJP President Vijender Gupta today warned the Delhi Government of starting a movement to compel the ''corrupt Government of Delhi to punish its corrupt
ministers and officers''.

He further said the people of Delhi were suffering due to the steep price spiral and unnecessary taxes whereas the Chief Minister and her Government were being beneficial for the rich and the tax evaders due to its corrupt practices and increasing the burden of price rise on the people.

He demanded that the Chief Minister dismiss the minister immediately and recommend a CBI enquiry against him.

Will Dikshit, Gill & Kalmadi run on CWG tracks? : BJP

New Delhi, Jul 19 (UNI) Lamenting the dropping out of top athletes for participation in the upcoming Commonwealth Games, the Delhi BJP today quipped if the Chief Minister, along with her counterparts, now run on the tracks.

''Will Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, Union Sports and Youth Affairs minister M S Gill and Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi now run on the tracks constructed for the Games?,'' Delhi BJP president Vijender Gupta
said.

He said a notion has been created in the minds of people outside the country due to which they were not taking the Games seriously and this was hurting the image of the nation.

''The Delhi Government has been misguiding people for long. Crores of rupees have already been spent on the preparation for the Games, for which only 76 days have left and still the city is not ready,'' Mr Gupta said.

He even criticised the government for not even taking responsibility for the inconvenience caused to the people ahead of the Games.

''The roads get waterlogged, traffic remains choked, frequent power cuts, inadequate water supply even after three-hour-long rains. Is the Chief Minister going to showcase 'tooti-footi, khudi huyi dilli' (broken and dug up Delhi) to our foreign
guests?'' the Delhi BJP chief questioned.

The 12-day sporting extravaganza will be the country's biggest sporting event since the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi.

Mr Gill had yesterday expressed disappointment over the series of pullouts from international athletes for the Commonwealth Games for which world class stadia have been built in the city.

The top athletes who have pulled out of the mega-event include Jamaican sprinters Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell, Australian tennis player Lleyton Hewitt, British tennis ace Andy Murray, and British cyclist Chris Hoy.

Govt using sub-standard material for CWG infrastructure: BJP

New Delhi, Jul 14 (UNI) The BJP today alleged that the Delhi Government was using sub-standard material to build the infrastructure for the Commonwealth Games resulting in deaths of people.

When heavy rains lashed the city two days back, life was thrown out of gear with waterlogging and traffic snarls causing rain-related accidents in many areas.

Walls collapsed, trees were uprooted, electric poles fell down and roads caved in across the capital taking lives of at least 17 people till now.

''The government is responsible for the deaths due to rains in the city. They are using low quality material in making buildings, roads and other infrastructure
and so taking lives of people,'' Delhi BJP president Vijender Gupta told mediapersons here today.

Earlier, he had even demanded that Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit should resign. ''The government has spent crores of rupees for the infrastructure development for the Games. But the heavy rains have exposed the government's preparation,'' Mr Gupta said. The Chief Minister should resign from her post owing moral responsibility for the deaths, he added.

BJP to submit white paper on CWG preparations to LG on Aug 3

New Delhi, Jul 14 (UNI) Calling it a ''game of corruption'' between the Delhi Government and corporates involved in preparation for Commonwealth Games' venues, BJP today said it will submit a white paper to the Delhi Lieutenant Governor exposing how the people in the city have been cheated by the government.

A delegation of the Delhi Pradesh BJP, headed by its president Vijender Gupta, initiated a tour to all the Games' venues to ''bring into light their real condition in front of the citizens and pressurise the government to speed up their tasks at least now.''

''We will visit all the venues one by one on day-to-day basis in next 15 days and exactly two months before the Games, that is on August 3, we will submit a white
paper to Delhi Lieutenant Governor Tejender Khanna in this regard,'' Mr Gupta told UNI here.

On the first day of the tour, Mr Gupta along with other senior party leaders, including former Delhi Chief Minister Madanlal Khurana and former party legislator Vijay Jolly, visited two places in Central Delhi -- Shivaji Stadium and subway in front of Super Bazar in Connaught Place.

Mr Gupta added that the BJP is ready to provide every kind of support to the government in the run up to the Games. ''They never asked us for any help. They should let us know if they have anything less, be it volunteers. But they should not put the nation's pride on stake,'' he said.

Accusing the government of mismanagement, Mr Khurana asked, ''what was the need of destroying the whole Shivaji Stadium,? Whatever they are, building was already there. They just had to renovate it a little.''

Mr Jolly blamed the government of losing a golden opportunity to build the infrastructure in the city. ''They are just destroying and remaking all the existing stadiums present in the capital. They have not build even one on their own,'' he said.

No question of apology for remarks on Afzal Guru: Gadkari

Jhinjholi, Haryana, Jul 9 (UNI) Refusing to apologise for his comment on Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, BJP national president Nitin Gadkari today said the people who kept his files closed for more than 4 years should instead apologise to the families of the martyrs who lost their lives in the attack on December 13, 2001.

''Why should I apologise for the remarks? There is no question of my apology,'' Mr Gadkari said while reacting to the demand of the Congress that he should apologise for calling Afzal Guru, who has not been hanged even after six years of being awarded death sentence by the court, as the ''damaad'' (son-in-law) of the
Congress.

''I thank the media that it highlighted my statement. Because of you truth on the issue has come in front of the public, '' he told mediapersons here at the launch of the BJP's training programme to energise the youth for the struggle against ''wrong
policies of the Congress''.

During a public meeting at Dehradun yesterday, Mr Gadkari had asked the Congress why it was seeking to protect the convict in the Parliament attack like a ''son-in-law''.

No power cuts during Commonwealth Games, assures Dikshit

New Delhi, Jul 1 (UNI) Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today assured that there will be no power shortage during upcoming Commonwealth Games while cautioned all private discoms to upgrade their systems.

''There will be no power shortage and no loadshedding during the Commonwealth Games. Even these days, when the temperature is soaring, there have been not much complaints of such shortage and we have been able to meet the challenges,'' Ms Dikshit told mediapersons.

The Chief Minister stated this almost a week after she directed the power distribution companies to ensure uninterrupted power supply to meet the rising demand.

Admitting to the two major power projects at Bawana and Jhajjar running behind schedule, the Chief Minister explained that there have been certain problems faced by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) due to which the delay has
occurred.

However, she maintained that the national capital will face no power shortage anytime during the Games and also claimed that in next five years the city will be able to produce three times more power than present.

''We have achieved such great heights and I am hopeful that in next five years, Delhi will be able to produce 15,000 MW of electricity and may sell to other states too,'' Ms Dikshit said.

Giving a word of caution to the power companies, Delhi Transco Ltd (DTL), Indraprastha Power Generation Company Ltd(IPGCL) and Delhi Power Company Ltd (DPCL), she said there was a need to upgrade the systems being used currently. ''In times when the nature doesn't help us, we have to perform better and for that our systems have to be perfect,'' she said.

She added that losses due to power theft has already come down to around 19 per cent from 52 per cent. ''But we are aiming to reduce it further to at least 11 per cent,'' she said.

The Chief Minister was speaking on the sidelines of the eighth foundation day of the three discoms celebrated here today. Delhi Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta and IPGCL MD R K Gaur were among the other dignitaries present on the occasion.

IPGCL spokesperson said the work at Bawana power plant is in full swing. ''It is expected that at least two gas turbines will be commissioned before the Commonwealth Games,'' he said. He expressed hope that the first unit of Aravali Power Company
Ltd which is a joint venture of IPGCL with Haryana Power Generation Corporation Ltd (HPGCL) and NTPC will also start generating power before the Games.

Sensitise rich for sustainable sanitation: Dikshit

New Delhi, Jun 28 (UNI) There is a need to sensitise rich people more than poor in order to have sustainable sanitation in the country, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said today.

''Not only the poor have to be made aware but the rich too have to be sensitised as they are the major garbage producer. Poor people do not possess the basic facilities but the rich class do not use them even if available,'' Ms Dikshit said.

The Chief Minister was speaking in the inaugural ceremony of a three-day-long national conference on 'Cost Effective Sustainable Sanitation - An Indian Experience,' here this morning.

The Chief Minister emphasised that there was a major problem of implementation. ''The government can provide funds, make plans, set infrastructure but it is the people who have to use them,'' she said. Even if there are toilets by the roadside, people are not in the habit to use them and likewise, garbage is not thrown even if the dustbins are present, she added.

''There have to have community participation,'' she noted. The conference is being organised by Plan India, a child-centered development organisation, in association with Water, Sanitation And Hygiene Institute (WASH).

Other stakeholders of the conference include Union Ministry of Rural Development, WES-Net India, SPHERE India, UNICEF, Water Aid and Water for People.

Book on Delhi Metro released to help tourists during CWG

New Delhi, Jun 26 (UNI) In an effort to make commuting in the capital more convenient, especially for tourists, ahead of Commonwealth Games, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today released a guide book on Delhi Metro.

The book written by Dr M Ramachandaran, Secretary, Union Ministry of Urban Development and Chairman, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC), gives station-wise details of interest to the metro users.

''The Delhi Metro has changed the travelling scenario in the city altogether. With the network's commencement, problems of pollution, congestion on roads, time wastage and cleanliness have been contained,'' the Chief Minister said while addressing
mediapersons.

The book titled 'Delhi Metro Stations and Surroundings' provides details of 143 stations with their classification, commencement date, location, facilities available, frequency of train services, availability of parking and footfalls received at the station.

The books, released earlier, have been of great help to the youth of the capital, especially the college students, who are now able to reach their classes and movie shows on time, she quipped. The Chief Minister expressed pleasure on the book as it also gives information on other modes of transport in the city.

''Many of us do not know which bus to catch from which Metro station to reach our destination. It has all the information about the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus stands,'' she said.

The book would also give one an insight into the locality in which the station is situated with landmarks nearby viz educational institutions, religious places, sports centres, health institutions, places of historical and tourist interest,
among others.

Referring to the Delhi Metro's expanding network, the Chief Minister said soon it will cover 190-km-long route and it is bound to become the life-line of the city after completion of Phase III and Phase IV when its total network length will be
around 414 km. Express Airport Line and other routes will prove to be very helpful during Commonwealth Games, she added.

DMRC Managing Director E Sreedharan, who was present on the occasion, described Dr Ramachandaran's tenure as Chairman of DMRC as a Golden Era of the Delhi Metro. Dr Ramachandaran expressed confidence that the book, priced at Rs 100, will become a valuable guide to Metro users and visitors.

''The book is also a great source of knowledge for people who do not know the meaning of terms like gauge over which they travel daily,'' he said. The book will be available at all Metro stations in a week's time. ''Interested readers will be able to avail the book from the Station Managers,'' DMRC chief PRO Anuj Dayal told UNI.

Serve society by means of Mediation Centres

New Delhi, Jun 15 (UNI) Mediation Centres, established by the Delhi Government, are providing a unique opportunity to people who want to serve the society by way of resolution of those disputes which have been lying in courts for years together.

In this initiative, taken up by Delhi Dispute Resolution Society (DDRS) in the Department of Law, Justice and Legislative Affairs of the Delhi government, not only lawyers are involved but members of various Resident Welfare Associations, retired
officials, bureaucrats, social workers and socially spirited people are also enrolling themselves.

''All respectable citizens can become the mediators by undertaking prescribed training by the DDRS,'' Principal Secretary (Law, Justice and LA) M L Mehta told mediapersons today. He added that interested people could also join the Society in spreading awareness about the programme.

Various non-governmental organisations (NGO) and other organisations which have been dealing in consumer affairs and/or family disputes have also approached the Society to workout mechanism for resolving the pre-litigative disputes, Mr Mehta
informed.

In regards to lawyers, those who have undergone training as prescribed by Mediation and Conciliation Project Committee (MCPC) of the Supreme Court and have got the certificate of trained mediator, are eligible to become the mediator.

At present, there are three such centres working in three different districts of the national capital located at Kasturba Gandhi Marg, Patparganj and IP Estate. Four other centres are coming up at Parliament Street, Rohini, Nand Nagri and Rajpur Road.

In addition, sub-centres will also be set up in public places like hospitals and markets.

The kind of cases enlisted in the rule-book of such centres include neighbourhood issues, family disputes, student issues, commercial complaints and other miscellaneous like human rights, cross-cultural and religious disputes, police, petty crime, disabilities, charitable, among others.

Within last three months, altogether 97 cases have been resolved by these centres, Mr Mehta said.

''Cases that had been lying pending in the courts for more than ten years were resolved at these centres within 45 minutes,'' he added.

Fear of honour killing? Approach Mediation Centres

New Delhi, Jun 15 (UNI) At a time when honour killings are a shock not only to Haryana but also the national capital, Delhi government's Mediation Centres today reminded people that they are here to provide counselling and enable mutual settlement.

An initiative by Delhi Dispute Resolution Society (DDRS) in the Department of Law, Justice and Legislative Affairs of the Delhi government, the Mediation Centres are a forum in which an impartial and neutral mediator tries to bring the disputant parties to arrive at a mutually agreeable solution.

''In times when children and parents are not able to convey their feelings to each other in a right manner, these centres can provide an opportunity to ventilate their feelings and grievances and thereafter work out the solution to meet their interests,'' Principal Secretary (Law, Justice and LA) M L Mehta told UNI today.

He said both the parents and the children can be counselled thereby increasing the possibility of settlement.

Mr Mehta, who is also the Chairman of DDRS, detailed that mediation was done in a very neutral and friendly atmosphere.

''The mediator establishes communication between the parties and also listens to both the parties separately to generate options for amicable settlement,'' Mr Mehta said.

However, to a query, he noted that even in such counselling sessions, the mediator could not impose anything on the parties. ''The cases are solved through settlement but not by passing orders,'' he said.

He added that these centres could not take up the cases of honour killings as ''they are very serious ones''. The kind of cases enlisted in the rule-book of such centres
include family disputes, domestic violence, parent-child disputes, human rights, cross-cultural and religious disputes, among others.

At present, there are three such centres working in three different districts of the national capital located at Kasturba Gandhi Marg, Patparganj and IP Estate. Four other centres are coming up at Parliament Street, Rohini, Nand Nagri and Rajpur Road.

In addition, sub-centres will also be set up in public places like hospitals and markets.

The reminder comes a day after a girl and a boy, allegedly in a love relationship, were brutally killed by the former's family as the two belonged to different castes.

Delhi Task Force to curb illegal water bottling plants soon

New Delhi, Jun 14 (UNI) The Delhi government will soon intensify its special drive to seal such illegal water bottling plants in the capital which are running without legal authority and proper licence.

To ensure for providing safe, pure and clean drinking water to the people, the government will form a state level task force to check on clean water in Delhi and will seal the illegal drinking water bottling plants.

''A nine-member state level task force, headed by Director, Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA), will have members nominated from Delhi Police, Divisional Commissioner, MCD Commissioner, NDMC, Dy Secretary (Home), Drug Controller, two SDMs (One from North and One from South),'' Delhi Health Minister Kiran Walia said today.

She said the task force will have full rights to check the quality of water being packed in bottles at the water bottling plants and on violation they will have the right to seal the plants and get registered a case against the defaulters.

Prof Walia added that though Department of Prevention of Food Adulteration was engaged in conducting drives to check the purity of all types of eatables and food and drink, there was a need to launch a special drive to check the illegal water bottle plants.

''Such bottling plants not having BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards Certification) will be sealed out rightly by the task force authorities,'' she noted.

She said the department was facing a lot of difficulty in picking samples of packaged drinking water as the exercise required the services of other related departments too.

''Keeping this in mind, the government has decided to constitute the task force to check the purity of water and to ensure the sealing of illegal water bottling plants prevalent in Delhi,'' she said.

During a special drive launched in the last week of May, 56 samples of special packaged drinking water were lifted from various corners of Delhi. Prof Walia said violators could be punished with imprisonment from six months to three years under provisions of law apart from sealing the plant.

Petrol pumps strike in Delhi affects life

New Delhi, May 14 (UNI) Agitated over the government's inaction on the hike in VAT rates of diesel, petrol pump owners in the national capital today observed a complete shut down hitting normal life in Delhi.

Morning commuters bore the major brunt as the petrol pumps remained closed since last midnight.

However, 12 petrol pumps all over the city, belonging to Indian Oil and Bharat Petroleum are open but vehicle owners have to wait for hours in long queues.

The closure protest has been called by Federation of All India Petroleum Traders (FAIPT).

FAIPT General Secretary Ajay Bansal told UNI that the government has failed to pay heed to the plight of petrol traders, who witnessed a loss of a staggering 48 per cent in diesel sales during April, 2010, in comparison to the same month in 2009.
Loss of Rs 350 crore was incurred during the period.

The VAT on diesel was raised from 12.5 per cent to 20 per cent. As a result, the difference between the rate of diesel in Delhi and in Haryana stood at Rs 4. ''Our demand is that the Delhi government should bring the diesel rate on the level of that in Haryana,'' Mr Bansal said.

All petroleum facilities will remain shut whether they were selling petrol, diesel or CNG, he added.

Scholars debate on Commonwealth Games ''national pride''

New Delhi, May 13 (UNI) Delhi may be slowly approaching the goal of becoming a ''world class city'' ahead of the Commonwealth Games 2010, but has the process actually benefited the Indian society at large, argued scholars here today.

Questions have been raised on the various dimensions of the Games, especially the level of expenditure on a one-time sporting event and actual delivery of benefits to the masses.

''In the process of making the Games a successful event, multiple violations of human rights, constitutional rights, especially of marginalised sections, should not have been done,'' former Delhi High Court Chief Justice A P Shah said.

Referring to homelessness and deportation as a result of building infrastructure for the 12-day international event, Justice Shah said, ''People have become insensitive towards demolitions. It is expected that the people who are residing in slums and JJ clusters will just vanish if their shelters are demolished.''

Rehabilitation and proper housing was important, he added.

Categorically speaking about begging in Delhi, Justice Shah said, ''To abolish begging, there are two goals -- nobody should beg and nobody should have to beg. It seems the city government has forgotten the second more significant aim.''

He quipped, ''The decision to deport beggars to their respective states is weird as Delhi is a city of migrants where almost 70 per cent of the population is from outside the city.''

Justice Shah was speaking while launching a report titled, ''The 2010 Commonwealth Games: Whose Wealth? Whose Commons?'' here.

The account, prepared by the Housing and Land Rights Network (HLRN), put forth many findings questioning the rationale for spending crores on the event, and outlined key general recommendations suggested to be done pre and post-event.

The launch was followed by a panel discussion chaired by former United Nations Special Rapporteur Miloon Kothari, Professor of Economics in Jawaharlal Nehru University Amitabh Kundu, Director of Hazards Centre Dunu Roy and members of HLRN.

Mr Kothari stressed that the entire process of the Games was in contravention of India's Constitutional obligations and the excessive costs involved are hard to justify in a country with high levels of poverty, hunger, inequality, homelessness and malnutrition.

Petrol dealers threaten to observe every Monday as off day

New Delhi, May 12 (UNI) Resorting to protest against hike in VAT on diesel, petrol dealers in the city have called for a one-day strike on May 14 and have decided to observe every Monday as an off-day to cut cost.

''We will be observing a protest closure on May 14 on all petrol pumps while every Monday, starting May 24, will be observed as off day. We are doing this as we have been pushed to a very tight corner and have no other option,'' Ajay Bansal, President, Delhi NCR Petrol Dealers Association, said today.

The association had decided to go on a similar strike on May 9 also but on the assurance given by Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, it was postponed.

The dealers claimed that despite a massive drop in sales figures of April 2010, no positive response has come from the city government.

They said they have lost substantial business to Haryana and Uttar Pradesh ever since the Delhi government hiked the VAT rate on diesel. While diesel in Haryana is cheaper by Rs 3.50 per litre, it costs 70 paise less in UP.

''Due to this price differential, a huge revenue loss to the tune of Rs 350 crore per annum will be incurred,'' Mr Bansal claimed.

In April 2010, Delhi sold 64,363 kilolitres diesel and VAT collected on this sale amounted to Rs 40.17 crore. In April 2009, Delhi had sold 105,903 kilolitres diesel and VAT collected was Rs 35.6 crore.

BJP leader demands criminal inquiry against Delhi CM

New Delhi, May 11 (UNI) BJP leader Vijender Gupta today demanded that a criminal case be registered against Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit for alleged misuse of public funds during a year before the Assembly Elections.

The demand comes a day before Lokayukta, Justice Manmohan Sarin, hears arguments in the concerned case tomorrow.

An inquiry was ordered in October last year into allegations of the BJP leader that she spent public money for ''personal image-building'' ahead of 2008-09
Assembly Elections.

Mr Gupta informed mediapersons that in an answer to RTI filed against Information and Publicity Department, ''it has been discovered that almost Rs 30 crore were
blatantly spent on advertisements in the year leading up to Legislative Assembly Elections.''

He referred to a reply given by present Director of Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Ms Alka Diwan, regarding details of the expenditure done by the Delhi Government to set up hoardings during the period 2005-2006 and 2008-2009.

''According to the statement given by her, no hoardings were put up by the city government during 2005-2006. Only four were put up between the years 2006-2007. However, during the election year 2007-2008 and 2008-2009, around 2100 hoardings were erected,'' Mr Gupta said.

The former Standing Committee Chairman added that as per Ms Diwan's statement, ''no funds were spent on hoardings in 2005-2006. On the other hand, in the election
year 2008, Rs 11 crore were spent on hoardings as against Rs 61,475 in year 2006-2007.''

With these allegations, he demanded that a criminal case be registered against Ms Dikshit, under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, for alleged misuse of public funds, during a year before the Assembly Elections.

The BJP leader also showed an article published in a Hindi daily and written by the then Director of Information and Publicity Department Uday Sahay in which he had
explained the Ministry's plan to set up the advertisements.

Mr Gupta stated that as per Mr Sahay's article, ''required evidence has been gathered causing ascertainment of the fact that public funds have been abused and misused by the Chief Minister to lure voters as well as to fuel her political aspirations.''