AAP demands LG’s resignation for tree felling

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday demanded resignation of Lt Governor VK Saxena alleging he had a role in the felling of “1100 trees” in the ridge area of the city.

Senior AAP leader and Delhi Urban Development Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj in a press conference alleged that the 1,100 trees were felled without any permission on the ridge, after a visit of the LG in February 3. No immediate reaction was available from the LG office over the issue and charge by Bharadwaj.

“I want to tell Delhi people that the LG got 1,100 trees illegally felled, tried to shift blame on others, misled the Supreme Court and still got exposed by the court,” Bharadwaj charged. The AAP leader demanded resignation of Saxena. “I think he should resign on moral ground. He has no moral ground to hold the post of LG for even one day,” he said.

The Supreme Court earlier in the day sought a “clear” statement from the vice chairman of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on whether trees in the ridge area were cut on the orders of the LG without its permission. “We direct the vice chairman to state before the court about whether any official record is available regarding the site visit of the Lieutenant Governor on February 3 and on what transpired on the visit of the LG.

“We need a clear statement of facts from the vice chairman, because if what is indicated in the emails is correct, then the felling of the trees was on the directions by the LG,” the top court said. The trees were felled in the southern Ridge’s Satbari area to construct a road from Chhattarpur to South Asian University.

A vacation bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said it proposes to hold a detailed enquiry into the acts of the DDA which resulted in destruction of several valuable trees and consequentially degradation of the environment. The apex court said it very shocking that the trees were cut despite knowing that it cannot be done without the permission of the top court. “Such brazen acts in the capital city cannot be lightly brushed aside by this court. If the authorities are not performing their statutory and constitutional duties of protecting the environment, the court has to give a clear and loud signal to all authorities that the environment cannot be damaged in such a fashion,” the bench said. The apex court rejected DDA’s request on March 4., he said. In May, the NGO told court that 1100 trees had been felled in February alone, he said.

“The LG got 1,100 trees felled illegally. Is it possible that officers got 1,100 trees felled without written permission?” Bharadwaj said. He claimed that the trees were felled at “verbal order” of the LG but no DDA officer had the courage to question it.