Ashish Khetan raises a stink, lays waste at corporation's door

NEW DELHI: Ashish Khetan, the New Delhi candidate of Aam Aadmi Party, took on his 'jhadu chalao' avatar on Monday-he swept the colony roads in his constituency and dumped all the waste in front of the corporation office in Anand Parbat. A truckload of waste was off-loaded at the gate of the building as civic officials looked on in amazement. Khetan called BJP-ruled corporations a "den of corruption", highlighting their failure to streamline waste management in the city.

His bid to take on BJP over collection and disposal of solid waste found resonance with residents. On Monday, Khetan, along with a team of volunteers wearing masks, made for Jharera village in Delhi Cantonment. Several residents pitched in as Khetan dirtied his hands to clean the colony roads. The filth seemed to clog the open drains. Ex-NSG commando and former MLA Surinder Singh, who was also part of the "safai abhiyan", said, "The corporation doesn't look after this village as it comes under the cantonment board, which never cleans up the area. The filth is here affecting people's health. This is our message to BJP-wake up or the people will land up at your office with all the waste," he said.

Jharera contrasted with the otherwise neat colonies in the cantonment. Villagers said none of the BJP or Congress candidates had visited the village, while AAP didn't inspire confidence in everyone. "After the assembly polls, this is the first time we are seeing the MLA in action. We hope AAP's mandate goes beyond seeking votes. They should mean business if they want support of the poor," said Amit Singh, a villager.

Manisha, another villager who was watching from a distance, said, "It's their job to woo voters. I don't think we should be swayed by this," she said. Many viewed AAP's promises with a pinch of salt as Kejriwal had quit as CM. Village elders like Prem Raj, who runs a dairy, said, "More than 80% of the villagers support AAP because it has made a strong connect. We are anxious to have better roads and sanitation," he said. Subedar Chauhan, another villager, said "There is no mobile tower in the village, while the Army colonies are all tip-top."

Khetan, who covered parts of Karol Bagh in his broad 'sweep', said the exercise was a symbolic way of exposing the inefficiency of corporations. "All the ills are rampant in the corporations. There is 'inspector raaj', making bribes necessary for every small application or paperwork. The corporation has done nothing. Look at Arjun Nagar which pales beside the upscale Safdarjung Enclave. I think NDMC has also failed in many areas lacking in affluence," said Khetan.