Repair of Delhi roads to start on war footing after assessment: Kejriwal

New Delhi | AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal said on Friday the repair work of all damaged roads in the city will start on a war footing following an assessment process.

Along with CM Atishi, Timarpur MLA Dilip Pandey and Model Town legislator Akhilesh Pati Tripathi, the former chief minister inspected the damaged Roshanara Road on Friday and promised swift repair and a comprehensive review of all PWD roads.

"According to the locals, the road has been in a damaged condition for the past seven to eight months. On Thursday, I went to Delhi University along with CM Atishi where also the road was broken. I want to request Atishi to assess the condition of all PWD roads in Delhi.

"We will take all our MLAs and ministers out on the streets and make an assessment. The repair work of all damaged roads will start on a war footing in the coming months so that the residents of Delhi do not face any difficulty. I want to assure the people that I am back and all the stalled work will be resumed," Kejriwal said.

He has also written a letter to Chief Minister Atishi, urging her to start the repair work of Delhi roads on a war footing.

"The condition of roads was not that bad when I was arrested in March. A few days ago I met their big leader. I asked what did you get from my arrest? I was shocked and felt sad to hear him say that at least the Delhi government got derailed and the city was stalled," Kejriwal said in the letter.

"It rained a lot this year as a result of which many roads in Delhi got damaged. Please come out on the road with all ministers and MLAs and get an assessment of damaged roads done and start repairing them immediately," he stated.

"We need to work day and night. All stalled works in Delhi have to be started. We need to solve all problems of the people of Delhi," the former chief minister said in the letter which he read out in the Assembly and later walked up to CM Atishi and handed it over to her.

In a post on X, Atishi said, "Today, I inspected Roshanara Road, Malkaganj, with Arvind Kejriwal. The road is damaged due to the laying of a water board line."

"Keeping in view the convenience of the people, this road will be constructed soon. Delhiites need not worry now, their son Kejriwal is now amongst them. In his presence, no one will be able to stop the work of Delhi," she said.

Meanwhile, Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav termed Kejriwal's inspection of damaged roads a "political stunt".

Yadav claimed that the people of Delhi have realised that only when the Congress was in power for 15 years, the city witnessed unprecedented development and progress.

They want the Congress to return to power, he said.

On Thursday, Kejriwal, along with former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, CM Atishi and Timarpur MLA Dilip Pandey inspected the road passing in front of the North Campus of Delhi University. He sought an early repair of the road.

Asked about the row over the MCD standing committee member election, the AAP supremo said it was clearly written in the MCD law that only the mayor has the right to call for the House sitting and when it meets, the mayor will lead it.

Neither the lieutenant governor nor the MCD Commissioner can call a sitting of the civic body's House, he said, adding that whenever a sitting of the MCD House is convened, 72 hours is given for it.

"There seems to be a flaw in their intentions. There seems to be a conspiracy to do some wrong in the elections. That is why they are engaged in conducting the elections by any means," the AAP chief said.

The BJP won the last vacant seat of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi's 18-member Standing Committee unopposed on Friday as the councillors of the ruling AAP and Congress boycotted the election.

The standing committee is the highest decision-making body of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

Kejriwal was lodged in Tihar jail for five months in an excise policy case and was released earlier this month after being granted bail by the Supreme Court.

He stepped down as Delhi chief minister last week, saying he would return to the post after getting a "certificate of honesty" from Delhi people in the Assembly polls in February.