Delhi riots: AAP govt to launch 2-day claim verification drive

The Aam Aadmi Party government will launch a two-day mega drive on Saturday to verify the claims of riot victims for compensation, as the police said it has so far registered over 600 cases in connection with the deadly communal violence in northeast Delhi.

Although the Delhi government has maintained that 53 people were killed in the violence last week, it has not provided a break-up of the death toll yet.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Environment Minister Gopal Rai visited the Eidgah in Mustafabad and interacted with locals besides taking stock of facilities being provided by the government at relief camps.

According to Central Board of Secondary Education, more than 98 per cent students appeared for Class XII exam in riot-hit northeast Delhi on Friday.

There were 2,698 centres for 1,99,763 registered candidates for the Central Board Secondary Exam Class XII Political Science exam in India, including in the entire Delhi, and foreign countries.

"It is encouraging to note that more than 98 per cent students appeared in the exam from northeast Delhi," an officials said.

Delhi Waqf Board on Friday released Rs 50 lakh for repair and renovation of houses and shops of violence-affected people.

The Board will help the affected people in repair of their houses and shops, irrespective of their faith, said Delhi Waqf Board chairman Amanatullah Khan.

"The Construction Committee of Delhi Waqf Board will undertake repair work from Saturday.

"The houses and shops of affected people, no matter which religion they belong to will be repaired by the Waqf Board and an amount of Rs 50 lakh was released for the purpose," Khan said.

Addressing a press conference, Deputy Chief Minister Sisodia said the government will launch a two-day mega drive to verify the claims of riot victims for compensation from Saturday.

He said the verification process, to be headed by six senior IAS officers, will be an important exercise to determine the claimants as the government is facing the issue of duplication of claim forms.

The government wants the verification process to complete at the earliest so that the victims can get compensation as soon as possible, Sisodia said.

Rs 88 lakh has been released as compensation to the riot victims, he said, adding that the government has received around 1,700 compensation forms from the victims of violence.

The Delhi Police said out of 683 cases registered, 48 were related to the Arms Act.

In total, 1,983 people have been either detained or arrested so far in connection with the communal violence, the police said.

A total of 251 meetings with Aman Committee have been conducted across the national capital, an official said.

A day after heavy rains caused waterlogging and difficulty for riot-hit victims at the Eidgah relief camp in Mustafabad, it got a new lease of life with new folding beds and wooden planks on Friday.

According to Ranjana Prasad, member of Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights, who is there at the camp, the wooden planks and plastic sheets were procured in less than 24 hours and placed underneath the mattresses.

"We have also ordered 500 folding beds which will reach the camp soon," she said.

Prasad also said the Anganwadi has also set up a camp there where infants aged between zero to six are provided care.

The Indian Youth Congress held a peace march in Delhi on Friday to restore communal harmony in the city.

The march, 'Sadhbhavana Tiranga Yatra', started from Rajendra Prasad Road and concluded at Tees January Marg.

IYC president Srinivas B V led the march which saw the participants carry a long tricolour.

"The country will gain nothing from the Hindu-Muslim divide. Unity is the need of the hour for the growth and prosperity of the nation.

"The nation doesn't need a leadership of division, it needs a leadership which promotes harmony and spirit of common brotherhood in the country," Srinivas said.

Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi led a protest of senior Congress leaders on the Parliament premises on Friday against the suspension of seven party MPs from the Lok Sabha.

The Lok Sabha suspended seven Congress members on Thursday for the remaining period of the Budget Session for 'gross misconduct' and 'utter disregard' for House rules after they snatched papers from the speaker's table.

After his visit at a camp in Mustafabad, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said that around 90 percent of the riot victims have filled up forms for compensation.

Rai said it has been reported that many riot-affected people are finding it difficult to lodge complaints with police.

He said he has spoken to station house officers and deputy commissioners of police to address the same.