AAP claims BJP-ruled MCDs have barred media from recording, airing House proceedings live

NEW DELHI, (PTI): The AAP on Thursday alleged that the BJP-ruled SDMC and EDMC have barred media from recording and telecasting live the House proceedings of two civic bodies to keep people in dark about their ”misdeeds”.

Addressing a press conference, Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) chief spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that the two civic bodies issued orders in this connection on Wednesday.

However, there was no immediate reaction from the SDMC and the EDMC on the AAP’s claim.

”The mayor of the BJP-led South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) issued a ‘Tughlaqi farman’ yesterday, stating that journalists will not be allowed to record or live telecast the proceedings of its House. A similar tyrannical order was issued by the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) as well,” Bharadwaj told reporters.

He termed the move as ”suspicious”, alleging that ”this clearly implies that the BJP is up to no good. Journalists have been barred from recording the MCD sessions to keep the public in dark about their misdeeds. The BJP wants to hide the truth from the public”. The AAP condemns and opposes the BJP-ruled civic bodies’ move to bar media from recording and telecasting live their House proceedings, Bharadwaj said.

”It is extremely appalling that the BJP-ruled MCDs, which do not telecast live their House proceedings, have now even restricted media as well from recording or live telecasting the House proceedings,” he charged.

Be it Lok Sabha or Delhi Vidhan Sabha, it is ”a standard procedure” for the House proceedings to be aired live to make it available to the public, he said.

”People have the right to know what is happening in the House proceedings. They should be able to witness which of their problems or development schemes their representative is addressing, and whether their interests are being represented well or not,” Bharadwaj added. (PTI)