Saurabh Bharadwaj News: Senior AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj launched a sharp attack on the BJP government, alleging that making the Pink Card mandatory in DTC buses has effectively snatched away the rights of poor Purvanchali women. He questioned the need to introduce the Pink Card when every woman residing in Delhi was already travelling for free on DTC buses, calling the move unnecessary and discriminatory.
Bharadwaj further alleged that the decision exposes the BJP’s bias against women from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana and other states who reside in the capital. He claimed that a scheme which earlier had no scope for corruption has now opened doors for middlemen and officials to benefit, and asked why the Rekha Gupta government is wasting public money on issuing Pink Cards instead of continuing the existing system.
AAP Flags Corruption concerns, says move Targets Poor and Migrant Women in Delhi
The AAP Delhi Unit Chief pointed out that within a year of coming to power, the BJP Government had exposed its discriminatory mindset towards women from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana and other states. He further asserted that a scheme which previously left no scope for corruption would now open the door for middlemen and officials to profit, and questioned why the Rekha Gupta Government is wasting public money on issuing Pink Cards instead of safeguarding women’s rights.
In a video message on X, AAP Delhi State President Saurabh Bharadwaj stated, “Rekha Gupta is making a new mockery. She says that now women will be given a Pink Card instead of a Pink Ticket. Till now, any woman coming from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana or anywhere else and residing in Delhi would board a bus and be given a free Pink Ticket, enabling her to travel without any difficulty. But now this new arrangement is being imposed that women will have to get a Pink Card made.”
Saurabh Bharadwaj questions Aadhaar Norms, Flags Corruption risk in Pink Card rollout
The AAP Delhi Unit Chief questioned the financial and administrative logic behind the move. “Why does the BJP Government want to incur this expense of making Pink Cards? The government has not clarified which women will be able to get this card and which women will not. To get the card made, they will demand a Delhi Aadhaar card. But lakhs of women from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Purvanchal who live in Delhi still have Aadhaar cards from their original states. Is the BJP Government directly hatching a conspiracy to dispossess these poor Purvanchali women of their rights?” he said.
Raising concerns over corruption, Saurabh Bharadwaj added, “No one is explaining how there could be corruption in a free ticket. In return for issuing a ticket, the bus conductor gets nothing because conductors are paid fixed salaries, and private buses are paid on a per-kilometre basis. The government does not pay anyone based on the number of tickets issued. In a system where there was no scope for corruption, the BJP has now created new avenues for corruption.”
Saurabh Bharadwaj News
He further said, “When the system was running smoothly and free of cost, why does the BJP Government want to award a contract to a private company to make these cards and benefit it? Where will a poor woman go to submit her documents and why is this unnecessary complication being created? Now, women will have to go from place to place to get a Pink Card and will be forced to take the help of middlemen. The condition of SDM and DM offices is such that even to get an income certificate made, people have to pay ₹5000. One can only imagine how much money middlemen will extract for making this Pink Card. After that, it will depend on the discretion of officials whose cards will be made and whose will not.”
Saurabh Bharadwaj said the move was deliberate and targeted. “The BJP Government deliberately brings such conspiracies only to snatch away the rights of poor Purvanchalis. The BJP Government should be ashamed. This is being done merely to give new business and profit to a private company that will make these cards. It is being projected as a major achievement, whereas in reality it is a shameful act through which people’s rights are being directly taken away,” he said.
