Delhi News Live Updates: CAQM invokes GRAP 3 as air quality remains ‘very poor’

Delhi News Live Updates: The city saw an average AQI of 357 in the “very poor” category.

Delhi News Live Updates: The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) sub-committee imposed Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) for Delhi-NCR once again on Thursday, with the air quality deteriorating. The city saw an average AQI of 357 in the “very poor” category. The curbs include a hybrid mode for classes up to V and a ban on BS III petrol and BS-IV diesel cars, staggered timings for public offices and municipal bodies in Delhi and a few NCR districts, as well as a ban on demolition work and mining activities.

AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal along with the party delegation met the Election Commission (EC) Thursday regarding the irregularities with the number of voters for the upcoming Delhi elections. He urged the Election Commission (EC) to suspend the District Election Officer (DEO) and Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) over the ‘large-scale voter deletions’ issue in which ‘a large number of voters are being added and deleted in the New Delhi assembly.’ He also accused BJP leader Parvesh Verma of illegal practices and called for him to be debarred from contesting the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Kejriwal further demanded a raid on Verma’s house to investigate his finances, alleging that “local poll officials have been complicit in facilitating BJP’s wrongdoing, which threatens the integrity of the election process.”

Delhi weather today: The mercury in Delhi witnessed a significant drop on Thursday morning, with a minimum temperature recorded at 6 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature in Delhi is expected to go up to 19 degrees Celsius today. The national capital also recorded a steep rise in the air quality index on January 9, recorded at 332 at 8:30 am. Thick fog across the city continued to impact flight and train operations. According to the IMD forecast, dense fog will continue in Delhi for the rest of the week, while the temperature is expected to drop to 5 degrees Celsius in the next couple of days.

Live Updates
19:42 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi court to pass order on Naresh Balyan's bail plea on Jan 15

A Delhi court will on January 15 pass orders on the bail plea of AAP Uttam Nagar MLA Naresh Balyan in a case under the stringent MCOCA.

Special judge Kaveri Baweja on Thursday extended till February 1 the judicial custody of Balyan in the case, after he was produced in court on its completion.

The judge reserved its order on the bail plea after hearing arguments from the accused and the prosecution.

"Arguments concluded. Put up for orders on January 15, 2025," it said.

The court will on January 22 hear arguments on the chargesheet in the case in which Balyan was arrested on December 4.

"Fresh chargesheet against accused Ritik was filed on the last date of hearing... for consideration of chargesheet on January 22, 2025," it said.

(PTI)

19:19 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: Kejriwal alleges BJP manipulating electoral roll in New Delhi seat, files complaint with EC

AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday lodged a complaint with the Election Commission, alleging that the BJP has manipulated the electoral roll in the New Delhi assembly constituency from where he is contesting the upcoming elections.

Kejriwal alleged that people associated with the BJP applied to add 13,000 new voters in the electoral roll and they sought to cancel 5,500 voter entries to "influence" the voting in its favour.

The former Delhi chief minister visited the Election Commission (EC) on Thursday to lodge a complaint against these alleged malpractices. Addressing the media after meeting EC officials, Kejriwal said, "In the past 22 days, 5,500 applications have been received for deletion of voter names in the New Delhi constituency. There are about one lakh voters in this constituency, meaning applications to remove 5.5 per cent of the electorate have been filed in just 22 days."

"This raises serious concerns, as when the Election Commission contacted some of these people, they denied submitting such applications. All 89 individuals contacted stated they had not filed any requests. It clearly indicates a scam," he said.

The AAP chief also demanded action against BJP leader Verma, accusing him of bribing voters and distributing money.

Kejriwal called for a raid on Verma's residence to check for the "presence of illicit funds". He also alleged that local election officials had "surrendered" to the BJP and were facilitating its "wrongdoings", and sought their suspension.

"We have full faith in the Election Commission and hope it will take appropriate action against these illegal activities," Kejriwal added.

(With inputs from PTI)

19:01 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Kejriwal panicking, trying to pressure us through partners for supporting AAP, says Delhi Congress chief

With the AAP facing "anti-incumbency" in Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal is "panicking" and is trying to pressure the Congress through its partners but "we are not going to make any kind of alliance" with his party, city Congress chief Devender Yadav said on Thursday. He also said there is no official statement from INDIA bloc parties about supporting the Aam Aadmi Party in the upcoming Delhi assembly polls, and any alliance leader making a statement to this effect is doing so in his or her own individual capacity.

Kejriwal, as the chief minister for the last 11 years, is not ready to discuss the problems of Delhi, Yadav said. He also took a jibe at Kejriwal for raising the issue of reservation to the capital's Jat community and demanding its inclusion in the Central OBC list.

(PTI)

18:44 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Decode Politics: Amid ‘Sheesh Mahal’ row, a look at what CAG can do — and can’t

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) is again in the spotlight amid a political row triggered by its report on the cost of renovation at the office and residence of former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

As The Indian Express reported last week, the CAG is learnt to have shown that starting from preliminary estimates of Rs 7.91 crore, the total cost of the work on the premises of 6, Flag Staff Road stood at Rs 33.66 crore when the Public Works Department completed it in 2022. The CAG’s findings have sparked a war of words between the BJP and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections next month.

The CAG, which is the country’s supreme audit body, has submitted a dozen audit reports to the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi in recent years. But the AAP government has not laid them in the Assembly, triggering a backlash from the BJP whose MLAs have approached the High Court. Some of these reports, including performance audits on several burning issues such as liquor supply in Delhi, prevention and mitigation of air pollution, and functioning of the Delhi Transport Corporation, were presented to the L-G four years ago. Read More

14:40 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: BJP's 'Sheesh Mahal' replicas for all Delhi districts

In the midst of the 'Sheesh Mahal' row, the Bharatiya Janata Party has ordered 14 model “replicas” of 6, Flag Staff Road, Civil Lines, one for each district in the Capital. The model has been titled ‘Sheesh Mahal – Kejriwal’s Museum of Corruption’ and it currently occupies a prominent place just inside the gate at the Delhi BJP’s Pandit Pant Marg office, visible to passersby. Read more.

13:31 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: 'AAP bluffed people into living in slums,' says BJP's Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told PTI, "First (AAP) they bluffed people living in slums and now they are enjoying in the palace. They have been in the government for over a decade, so they should give a record of what they did and not demand answers from others. More importantly, the main player (Congress) of the (INDIA) alliance is contesting against you. Alliance has never been the DNA of Congress party, and the same situation is with Kejriwal. Congress' politics has always been against the thoughts of an alliance."

12:48 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: Arvind Kejriwal thanks INDIA bloc, attacks Congress

Arvind Kejriwal, during his press conference, thanked members of the INDIA bloc for extending their support to the Aam Aadmi Party during upcoming Delhi election. He thanked SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray for their unwavering support to AAP.

Attacking the Congress party and Sandeep Dikshit for saying that he will file a case against AAP for defamation, Kejriwal said, "Let them do it, the only thing they can do is file cases. They are just a pawn of BJP. They follow the directions of BJP, like in chess, If BJP asks him to take one step, he will take one. If BJP asks him to file cases and buy people from other parties, he will do exactly that."

12:32 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: Kejriwal assures reservation for Jaat community in Delhi govt institutes, departments

Arvind Kejriwal said, "There are seven central universities in Delhi, DU has several colleges, hospitals, and government sectors like Delhi Police, NDMC, AIIMS, DDA and other hospitals where the people from these castes are not availing benefits of reservation. I request the PM and Home Minister to fulfill the promises they made to the people of these communities. I again request you to not betray the people and Jaat Samaj of Delhi."

The former chief minister said, "I also assure Kejriwal will fight for his Jaat sisters and brothers and get them added in the Centre's list. I will do whatever it takes and go to any limit to get you your rights."

12:18 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: 'PM Modi, BJP wronged the Jaat community in Delhi,' says Arvind Kejriwal

Arvind Kejriwal said during the press conference, "PM Modi called and met leaders from the Jaat community in Delhi four times over the last ten years. He promised them that the Jaat community will be included in reservation but nothing has been done yet."

Kejriwal further said that he has written a letter to PM Modi, requesting the inclusion of the community in DU reservation.

12:11 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: Arvind Kejriwal attacks Modi govt over DU reservations

During a press conference on Thursday, former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of wronging the people of the Jaat community in the national capital.

"When students of Delhi go for admission in a central university like DU they don't get the reservation under OBC category," he said.

"Interestingly, Rajastan's Jaat community is included in Centre's OBC list and they get reservation in Delhi colleges, but not Delhi students who come from the Jaat community," Kejriwal added.

11:42 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: AAP alleges PM's residence built at cost of Rs 2,700 crore

Attacking BJP over the 'Sheesh Mahal' row, the Aam Aadmi Party alleged that the prime minister's residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg was constructed at the cost of Rs 2,700 crore.

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11:14 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: Capital witnesses sharp drop in temperature

Delhi on Thursday recorded a sharp drop in temperature, with the minimum temperature for the day being recorded at 5 degrees Celsius.

As per the data of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Delhi recorded 6.4 degrees Celsius at 5.30 am on Thursday.

The MeT Department has predicted the minimum temperature for the day is 5 degrees Celsius while the maximum temperature is expected to hover around 21 degrees Celsius.

10:41 (IST) 9 Jan 2025
Delhi News Live Updates: BJP uploads video of CM house amid 'Sheesh Mahal' row

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) posted a video on its social media account, showing the inside of the chief minister's residence in Delhi in the midst of the Sheesh Mahal row.

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