AAP makes local shift to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi polls

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court's observations on the state of sanitation in the capital have given a handle to AAP to put the BJP-led corporations in the dock for their failure to maintain cleanliness. It says the agencies are BJP's model of governance in the city and that voting in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi won't change that.

"The miserable conditions, exposed by the high court, show the real face of the BJP-run corporations. The agencies, which BJP has been heading for the past seven years, are a den of corruption and known for their inefficiency," said an AAP source.

AAP, which is likely to be confronted with Modi during campaigning for the assembly polls, is trying to shift focus to local issues where it claims to be on a strong ground. AAP lost in 60 out of 70 assembly seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls though it had won 28 seats in the 2013 assembly elections. Its campaign material, released on Wednesday, has been pitting BJP's performance in the corporation against AAP's 49-day stint in government. It has also been attempting to corner the civic bodies by sending it photographs of garbage in various parts of the city.

BJP members are blaming the state government for the mess. "We respect the court's observations. But we have no control over people littering in the city. We can sweep the roads and lift garbage but we can't stop people from littering.

MCD had sent a policy on littering to the Delhi government in 2010. Despite repeated efforts, the government has not approved the policy.

But both Congress and AAP governments did nothing for the anti-littering law. The civic agencies should be empowered to penalize people for littering,'' said Subhash Arya, leader of the house, South Corporation.

BJP leaders say they will tell people about the work done by the corporations. in the last seven years.

"We have taken a lot of measures to streamline functioning of the corporation.We have simplified the licensing system, sanctioning of building plans etc. Only corporation is giving pension to poor people. There is a lot of good work done by the corporation which people can't overlook,'' said Satish Upadhyay, Delhi BJP president.