Congress, BJP have no 'moral right' to question on parliamentary secretary: AAP

NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party today accused BJP and Congress of bending the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act to provide facilities to its councillors thus leaving them bereft of any "moral right" to question AAP on the issue of office of profit.

The party said the standing committees of the civic bodies had unilaterally decided to extend the facilities of transportation and offices to certain councillors, which AAP claimed amounted to monetary graft.

"Congress and BJP have no moral right to question us on parliamentary secretaries, who are not paid a single paisa, unlike the provisions for their councillors. According to the DMC Act only mayors are entitled to such benefits.

"They illegally created the posts of Leader of the House and Leader of Opposition, which have no existence in the DMC Act, in extending the facilities. The Chairman of the Standing Committee was also a beneficiary of that," AAP's Delhi Convenor Dilip Pandey told reporters.

AAP said since the benefits were monetary in nature, the Standing Committee had no power to amend the Act and any such change had to be approved by the Lt Governor and the Union Home Ministry.

"Why does not BJP leader Vijender Gupta forward a complaint related to these irregularities to the Anti-Corruption Branch?" Pandey asked.

On the issue of the President's refusal to give assent to a bill to keep the 21 AAP MLAs, appointed as parliamentary secretaries, out of the ambit of office of profit, Pandey reiterated the lawmakers were assisting the government without any pecuniary benefits.