Chandigarh Congress Sunday expressed its concern over uprooting about 200 self-employed vegetable and fruit vendors from a makeshift market in village Kajheri without providing an alternate site.
Rajiv Sharma, the party’s spokesperson, in a statement issued here said that “While on papers the BJP government promised two crore jobs to the youth of India, but the reality is that even the small businesses of self-employed poor people, which are being run without any help from the government, are being systematically destroyed”.
He appealed to the BJP-led Municipal Corporation to allow the vendors to run their business from the same site, till alternate arrangements are made for them.
Sharma added that the vendors have made serious allegations of corruption and extortion against a senior leader of the Chandigarh unit of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). He lamented the silence of the top leadership of the AAP, alleging that they turn a deaf ear to the allegations against their own party members. He demanded a fair inquiry into the allegations by the police.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Anand Singh, who is also a former sarpanch of Kajheri and former chairman of the Chandigarh Market Committee also criticised the uprooting of vendors and demanded that they be given adequate space immediately to start the market on the pattern of kisan mandis being run in the city. This will ensure the corporation gets a significant amount of revenue and vendors the necessary facilities, he said. He also demanded that the names of all the current vendors be included in the e-mandi.
