In the ongoing Centre and AAP government tussle, Delhi government bureaucrats are a besieged lot. Squeezed between the two power houses, some Principal Secretaries holding important portfolios have gone on long leaves; some officials are without salaries for months; while some are under suspension.
“It has become unbearable. If we don’t follow the due procedure and agree with the Ministers, it will be held against us and put in our service record. And those who are following the procedure are shown the door by the elected government,” said a senior government official on condition of anonymity.
On Monday morning, Delhi Dialogue Commission vice-chairman Ashish Khetan, a non-elected member who enjoys the privileges of a Cabinet minister, tweeted how Prime Minister Narendra Modi is using the Delhi government bureaucrats to act against the Aam Aadmi Party government.
“Modi ji said bureaucracy takes undue advantage of political fights. But he is using Delhi govt bureaucrats to act against the elected govt [sic]” Mr. Khetan tweeted. This was later re-tweeted by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
While the Principal Secretaries are on a long leave, the Delhi government in an unprecedented move has made Indian Revenue Services (IRS) level official and an engineer as heads of Health and Public Works Department respectively.
Surprisingly, all three departments — PWD, Power and Health — whose Principal Secretaries are on long leave come under Delhi’s Home Minister Satyendar Jain. Even the suspension order of the two DANICS officials of the Home Department was issued by Mr. Jain. Incidentally, March has always been the busiest for senior Delhi government officials, particularly the Principal Secretaries, and their leaves are generally not approved as they prepare the Delhi Budget.
“When we tell them (AAP government) that an approval from L-G or the Centre is needed, they call us the B-team of BJP. Working with this elected government is becoming difficult,” said another official.
The first public and biggest showdown between the bureaucrats and AAP government took place on December 31 when over 200 government officials went on en mass leave as two DANICS officials were suspended by Mr. Jain. Even as their suspension orders were declared ‘non est and null’ by the Centre and later by the Lieutenant Governor, the AAP government still treats them as ‘suspended’ officials. For the month of February, the two officials received deducted salaries, which suspended officials get.
The senior government officials are now pushing for a Civil Services Board (CSB) in Delhi, which would look into matters of their postings and action to be taken for/against them, as it can mitigate their problems.
L-G’s direction
Najeeb Jung, meanwhile, has directed Delhi Chief Secretary K.K. Sharma to restore the full salary of the two senior DANICS officers, who were suspended for allegedly defying the AAP government’s order. The L-G’s move comes after the Arvind Kejriwal government deducted half the salaries for February of Special Secretaries Yashpal Garg and Subhash Chandra.
“The L-G has directed the Chief Secretary to restore the full salary of Mr. Garg and Mr. Chandra as the Home Ministry has already declared as null and void their suspension order by the AAP government,” sources said.
In January, Mr. Jung had declared as “illegal” the AAP government’s order to slash the salary of the two officials. In a letter to the Chief Secretary in January, the L-G had directed Mr. Sharma to ensure full compliance with the Home Ministry’s directive and declared that the order to pay the two officials only subsistence allowance has no legal sanctity.
While some officials are without salaries for months; some have been suspended
