Medha Patkar, social activist of the Narmada Bachao Andolan fame on Sunday protests against the ongoing metro rail project in the city, alleging that the plan was flawed and would lead to the uprooting of hundreds of people from their homes.
Patkar marched to Sultan Bazaar, where inhabitants and small merchants have been voicing disapproval against the metro rail project. “The netas never asked whether the people wanted the metro rail to pass through that corridor. Which democratic process fails to acknowledge the struggles of people?” she asked.
Medha Patkar, 60-year-old activist, is fighting the elections on an Aam Aadmi Party ticket from Mumbai northeast parliamentary seat, said that electing AAP to power would ensure the rights of adivasis, dalits, women and minorities.
AAP had fielded only those candidates in AP who have been working at the grassroots level and can bring about sustainable development, Patkar said soon after speaking at a media conference.
“AAP is the only party that does not believe in corporate-owned democracy. It believes in taking on business tycoons whose cumulative wealth adds up to 31 per cent of the country’s wealth. If you vote for AAP candidates, you will never lose faith in the democratic system,” she said. Patkar was accompanied by Ramon Magasasay award winner Rajendra Singh in the city march.
“They promised to introduce a water security bill in Parliament, but didn’t. Politicians, including Narendra Modi, have woken up to the dying Ganga’s plight in Varanasi only during the time of election, but AAP believes in conserving rivers and solving the water crisis in the country,” Singh said by maintain that AAP was committed to fighting for water security.