Arvind Kejriwal slams BJP for not taking decision on e-rickshaws

NEW DELHI: Attacking the BJP for "policy paralysis", the Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal today threatened to undertake an agitation if a decision on the banned e-rickshaws was not taken in the next 10 days.

The AAP leader, who met Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari here, said that if a quick decision was taken, the government could have prevented a ban on e-rickshaws.

"The Congress government suffered from policy paralysis and did not take any decisions. The BJP government too is facing the same problem," he said.

Criticising the minister, Kejriwal said that Gadkari had announced in his rally that a policy decision would soon be taken on the matter of e-rickshaws.

"Nitin Gadkari had addressed a rally in Ramlila Maidan and assured that the ministry would come up with a policy on this within a month. But nothing has happened until now and over 2 lakh families of e-rickshaw drivers are starving.

"If there is no policy on this in next days then we will launch an agitation," Kejriwal said after his meeting with the minister.

The AAP leader claimed that when he asked Gadkari about the assurance he made at the rally, the minister responded that they could not be implemented as they were not legal in nature.

"He (Gadkari) said that his ministry later told him that those announcements could not be implemented as they were not legal. Strange!" Kejriwal tweeted.

Gadkari had yesterday said that a notification for plying auto rickshaw will be issued in next 10 days. The High Court has banned plying of e-rickhshaws on road.

"A notification pertaining to e-rickshaw has been issued. We will put it on website and seek peoples opinion on it in the next ten days and will solve the problem immediately thereafter. We will issue (final) notification for plying of e-rickshaws after 10 days," the minister had said.

Kejriwal said that a call by Gadkari was also made to Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi in this matter as many e-rickshaws have been confiscated by the cops.

"The e-rickshaw drivers have complained that many parts of their vehicles have gone missing. The Police Commissioner has assured that if the drivers and owners make a request for release of the vehicles before the court, the cops will not oppose the same," the AAP leader said.