Delhi Gymkhana Club eviction: AAP leader says BJP govt 'displacing people one by one'

Till now, it was the poor who were being affected, so the rich were not too bothered, Bharadwaj said.He said the turn then came for shopkeepers, so salaried professionals did not feel affected, and now the turn of senior officers and professionals who visit clubs has come.Everyones turn will come eventually, he said.When people do not feel the pain of others, others will not feel their pain either.

New Delhi, May 23 ( PTI) AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj on Saturday alleged that the BJP-led government is ''displacing people one by one'' after the Centre issued an eviction notice to the Delhi Gymkhana Club, saying ''everyone's turn will come eventually''.

''Ever since the BJP government came to power, it has only displaced people and never rehabilitated anyone. Till now, it was the poor who were being affected, so the rich were not too bothered,'' Bharadwaj said.

He said the turn then came for shopkeepers, so salaried professionals did not feel affected, and now the turn of senior officers and professionals who visit clubs has come.

''Everyone's turn will come eventually,'' he said.

''When people do not feel the pain of others, others will not feel their pain either. In this way, the government will continue to act unchecked and displace people one by one. The day people begin to feel the suffering of others, they will start questioning the government,'' he said.

The remarks came after the Centre asked the Delhi Gymkhana Club in Lutyens' Delhi to hand over its premises by June 5, stating that the 27.3-acre land parcel was required for ''strengthening and securing defence infrastructure'' and other public security purposes.

In the May 22 order, the Land & Development Office (L&DO) under the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry said the premises at 2, Safdarjung Road, situated near the prime minister's residence on Lok Kalyan Marg, fall in a highly sensitive and strategic zone and were critically required for urgent institutional and governance-related needs.

The L&DO said the land had originally been leased to the then Imperial Delhi Gymkhana Club Ltd for operating a social and sporting club, but the President of India, through the office, had exercised powers under the lease deed to terminate the lease and order re-entry of the premises with immediate effect.

According to the order, the entire land parcel, along with all buildings, structures, lawns and fittings would vest with the government upon re-entry, and possession of the premises would be taken over on June 5.

A member of the club, Siddharth, said the order would be challenged through an appeal, asserting that there was no security threat linked to the premises.

He said the club would comply if directed to do so by a court.

Founded during the British era, the club started functioning at the site in 1913 under the name Imperial Delhi Gymkhana Club and was renamed after Independence. The present structures were built in the 1930s.