Delhi Transport Minister Gopal Rai has said his government will not hesitate from taking stern action against the BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Vijay Goel if he was found to be breaking the odd-even car rationing rule as threatened by him on Friday.
Rai said that Goel will be treated like any other offender and penalised for the violation.
Goel, a former Delhi BJP president, had on Friday announced that he would violate the odd-even rule on Monday as a mark of protest against the scheme which he alleged is a “publicity stunt” by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
“We will not spare anyone for the violation of odd-even rules. The BJP leader will be offered roses twice by the civil defence volunteers showing ‘Gandhigiri’ to follow the scheme and if depsite that, he does not follow the same, he will be imposed a fine of Rs 2,000,” Rai told reporters here.
Slamming Goel, Rai alleged that his statement to break odd-even rules shows his “frustration” at being sidelined by BJP.
“Taxpayers’ money is being spent every day on publicising Kejriwal’s photos. If he is so convinced about the scheme, then why spend crores of rupees on publicity and not implement it permanently?” Goel had said.
Delhi government’s odd-even scheme is all about “maximum publicity, minimum effect”, he had said.
Goel had alleged that the taxpayers’ money was not only being “misused” on “ridiculous” advertisements in Delhi but also to “publicise” Kejriwal’s image in other states for “political gains”.
Meanwhile, Delhi chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, has accused the RSS-BJP of plotting for the failure of odd-even scheme, which is otherwise being widely hailed.
Kejriwal’s allegation came in the wake of the call for strike by Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh. The RSS-affiliated union has announced that 81,000 auto-rickshaws and an estimated 12,000 black-yellow cabs registered in Delhi would go off the streets on Monday in protest against what they called the “government’s bias towards companies like Uber and Ola.”
Kejriwal’s cabinet colleague Rai too launched tirade against the RSS. He told reporters at the secretariat, “The BJP and the RSS are trying to make the enforcement of the scheme a failure…the BJP’s Vijay Goel has issued a challenge to deliberately violate its restrictions because he can afford to pay Rs.2,000…If he does so on Monday, he will be given a rose by volunteers on both the first and second instances. Let him be advised that he will be issued a fine on being caught the third time.”
The opposition to odd-even scheme by the saffron party was there even during its inaugural run in January when the it was accused of orchestrating mass strike by officers in Delhi government.