Amid increasing tension between the Aam Aadmi Party and the Lieutenant Governor over the appointment of the acting Chief Secretary and shifting of two other officers, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday conveyed to the L-G that his stand was against the provisions of the Constitution and the Delhi Government would not pay heed to it.
Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung wrote to the State government that the decision to remove Principal Secretary (Services) Anindo Majumdar and give his charge to the Secretary to the Chief Minister Rajendra Kumar was untenable as the orders were not signed by him.
While the L-G’s letter was addressed to Mr. Sisodia, the latter expressed surprise that it had been leaked to the media even before it was received. “A Constitutional authority leaking letters... Is it allowed under the Constitution of India?” tweeted Mr. Sisodia.
Mr. Sisodia, who later tweeted that he received the letter at 2:35 p.m., shot off a reply to the LG telling him bluntly that his directions were against the provisions of law and the Constitution and could not be complied with.
“The Chief Minister is writing to the Prime Minister on the issue,” Mr. Sisodia informed the LG. Mr. Kumar had replaced Mr. Majumdar, who had notified the order for appointment of Shakuntala Gamlin as the acting Chief Secretary of the Delhi Government.
Mr. Sisodia also hit out at the Opposition for criticising the AAP. “Delhi Government is working with full speed,” he posted on the micro-blogging site. “I took decisions on about 100 files today and convened five to six meetings. We are working on a wide range of issues from budget and compensation to farmers and unauthorised colonies to schools and hospitals.”
The Deputy Chief Minister said those “behind high power tariffs and corruption” would not understand this.
