BJP Govt breaks its promise, shuts down Mohalla Clinics opened under Arvind Kejriwal Govt: Kuldeep Kumar News24 –

Lakhs of Delhiites have been left without free medical care as the BJP government has shut down over 200 Mohalla Clinics established under the Arvind Kejriwal government. Condemning the move, senior AAP leader and MLA Kuldeep Kumar said the BJP has been exposed for betraying its poll promise of not shutting down public welfare schemes. He said the closure of these clinics has not only rendered hundreds jobless but also deprived lakhs of people of basic healthcare, proving that the BJP’s so-called ‘four-engine’ government has wrecked Delhi in just nine months.

Addressing a press conference along with doctors and staff fired from Mohalla Clinics, AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar stated, “It has been over nine months since the BJP came to power in Delhi. This government was formed on the basis of false promises. PM Modi and the entire BJP had clearly promised the people of Delhi that they would not shut down any public welfare schemes started by the Arvind Kejriwal government. But as soon as they came to power, they forgot all those promises. The people of Delhi had always feared that the BJP could never be a government for the common man, and today that fear has turned into reality.”

Highlighting the collapse of Delhi’s healthcare model, Kuldeep Kumar said, “The Mohalla Clinic model, known as the backbone of Delhi’s health services, was a revolutionary step by the Arvind Kejriwal government. This model received recognition across the country and abroad, and several nations even adopted it. The staff, pharmacists, and other employees working in Mohalla Clinics are now struggling day and night to save their jobs and livelihood.”

He elaborated, “When the BJP government was formed in Delhi, CM Rekha Gupta had assured these employees that the Mohalla Clinics would not be shut down and no one would lose their job. But today, the BJP government is on a mission to close them. Hundreds of Mohalla Clinics across Delhi have already been locked. By shutting these clinics, the BJP government has deprived patients of free medical treatment. This exposes the BJP’s lies. The BJP had said that Mohalla Clinics would not be closed and doctors and staff would not be removed, but the Rekha Gupta government has now locked these clinics.”

Presenting an email as evidence, the senior AAP leader continued, “The order sent to staff clearly mentions that the Chief District Medical Officer (CDMO) of the Central District has noticed that some Aam Aadmi Mohalla Clinics are being operated by staff without any appointed doctors. Therefore, it is informed that the doctors’ contracts expired on 12 November 2025 and that the State Programme Officer (SPO) of the Aam Aadmi Mohalla Clinic Cell have not approved any extensions. This order makes it clear that the government did not extend the doctors’ contracts and has not permitted any staff to open clinics.”

“As a result, more than 200 Mohalla Clinics in Delhi were locked on 12 November. This has deprived patients of medical services and has also snatched away the livelihoods of pharmacists and other employees. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had assured them that no one would lose their job, but she has now taken away their employment. This government never fulfils what it promises, it is entirely a government of hollow slogans. The four engines of the so-called four-engine BJP government have completely failed within nine months,” he asserted.

Kuldeep Kumar added, “The BJP government used to talk about regularising staff, but now it is taking away their jobs. The AAP has always said that if BJP wants to build Arogya Mandirs, let them build them, we have never opposed it. Just as BJP pasted its stickers on dispensaries and polyclinics of the AAP government, they can paste them on Mohalla Clinics too, but at least do not snatch away people’s jobs or deny citizens access to healthcare. This government exists only on paper, not on the ground.”

He emphasised, “BJP has ruined the condition of Delhi’s government hospitals to the point that they don’t even have medicines, and patients are left suffering without treatment. After the recent Red Fort bomb blast, there wasn’t even an ambulance available at Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital to carry the bodies. This shows the BJP government’s insensitivity towards healthcare. May God give wisdom to this government. It should immediately reinstate the staff and reopen the Mohalla Clinics because these clinics are the backbone of Delhi’s health system.”

Afterward, Mohalla Clinic Union President Dr Jitendra Kumar stated, “We have been working in Mohalla Clinics for more than six years, yet on 30 October 2025, we were suddenly issued termination letters. As a result, at least 200 Mohalla Clinics were shut down and more than 600 employees were sent home. We were given only a two-week notice period. On 16 May, when we met Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, she publicly stated that no one would be removed. She assured that everyone would be given priority appointments in Ayushman Arogya Mandirs and that no test would be required since we had already cleared a written examination conducted by Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha (IP) University, which also conducts several major exams in Delhi.”

Responding to BJP’s allegations, Dr Jitendra Kumar said, “Recently, some BJP ministers claimed that Mohalla Clinic staff are corrupt, party workers, or have fake degrees. But our merit list was prepared after a written test and counselling. Our certifications were issued by the Medical Council of India and the Nursing Council of India, among others. We are not quacks. This initiative was started to promote professionals and provide better healthcare to the poor and middle class.”

“Yet our salaries were withheld for three to four months. How are employees supposed to survive? Now, through media trials, efforts are being made to label us as corrupt. After clearing IP University’s examination they’re now calling us party workers, what kind of politics is that? We are simply employees. Governments change every five years, but will they replace every employee each time? Will they make employees contest elections too? This is pure political vendetta because we work in Mohalla Clinics,” he asserted.

Dr Jitendra Kumar added, “We have also approached the court. The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has granted a stay until 20 November, maintaining the previous status quo. However, despite this, the clinics were shut down after doctors’ contracts expired on 12 November. Now that there are no doctors, what can we do? On one hand, officials are acting arbitrarily, and on the other, there is complete silence from the Chief Minister.”

“She repeatedly says that Mohalla Clinics are built on drains, but never thinks that these clinics provide care to 100 to 150 poor patients daily. Recently, there has been a severe shortage of medicines including basic drugs like paracetamol, anti-allergic tablets, and metronidazole are unavailable. Due to pollution, cases of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) have increased, but patients have not received medicines for six months. Out of 545 Mohalla Clinics, 2,000 employees get rendered jobless. This is nothing short of playing with the health of Delhi’s citizens,” he emphasised.

The association president concluded, “The Chief Minister had promised that employees would be accommodated in Ayushman Arogya Mandirs. A total of 1,139 such centres are to be established, creating 15,946 posts. Mohalla Clinics themselves have over 2,000 posts. During COVID-19, when large hospitals were closed, we became frontline corona warriors. Today, we have been thrown out onto the streets. Is it justice to dismiss us merely because of the party’s name? This is wrong. BJP Delhi President Virendra Sachdeva himself had said that all employees would be made permanent, but today, we are being forced to wander for our livelihoods.”