NEW DELHI: Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, while extending his New Year’s greetings to Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, has taken the opportunity to hit out at AAP National Convener Arvind Kejriwal for calling her a “temporary chief minister.”
In a letter to the CM, the LG termed the comments as not only insulting to Atishi but also disrespectful to the President of India and himself as her representative.
"...I found this very objectionable and I was hurt by it. It was not only an insult to you, but also to your appointee, the President of India and to me as her representative' As a Lieutenant Governor, I am concerned about this level of public discourse and at the same time, I am hurt by the conversation of presenting the full-time Chief Minister of my government as a temporary Chief Minister..." reads the letter.
The LG further outlined the challenges faced by the Delhi government including the Yamuna pollution crisis, garbage management, and the poor state of infrastructure in industrial and slum areas.
Saxena criticised Kejriwal saying, "The public characterisation of a temporary or stopgap chief minister, as articulated by Shri Kejriwal, has no constitutional basis. It is also a deplorable violation of the democratic spirit and values enshrined in the Constitution authored by Babasaheb Ambedkar.”
The LG lauded Atishi for her approach in governance, contrasting it with her predecessor's alleged reluctance to take on administrative responsibilities.
“For the first time during my tenure, I have seen a Chief Minister actively performing the duties of the office,” he wrote.
Saxena had earlier offered words of praise for Atishi, calling her “a thousands times better" than her predecessor, with whom he has had several tempestuous run-ins – on legal, administrative, and governance issues – over the past months.
The letter also saw LG expressing his concern about the level of political discourse in the capital. “On the occasion of swearing in you as the Chief Minister, I had also congratulated you wholeheartedly and wished you and in the period from then till now, for the first time in my two and a half years of tenure, I saw a person holding the post of Chief Minister doing the work of the Chief Minister. Where your predecessor Chief Minister did not have a single department of the government and neither did he sign files, you took charge of many departments and tried to work on various issues of administration," Saxena said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Atishi responded to the letter by slamming it as "dirty politics." She stressed that she was running the government based on the path shown by Kejriwal.
"Arvind Kejriwal worked for the betterment of Delhi for nine-and-a-half years. The people of Delhi will make Arvind Kejriwal win again.
Instead of doing dirty politics, focus on the betterment of Delhi," the CM said.
"Obstruction of the 'Mahila Samman Yojana' is a clear testimony of politicisation of the lieutenant governor's office," she charged.
Atishi questioned how anyone could be so caught up in politics that they did not care for the people.
"The lieutenant governor's office is now working as a proxy of the BJP and, in its enthusiasm to protect the interest of the party, causing damage to the lives of ordinary Delhites," she added.
She also pointed out that his responsibility was to maintain law and order.
"It's the one job that you are directly responsible for and mandated to do.
Unfortunately, you have miserably failed in keeping this city safe.
A former MP is distributing money to lure voters right under your nose but you illegally gave him police protection," she charged, in a reference to BJP leader Parvesh Verma.
Atishi expressed hope that Saxena would let go of the "baggage of politics" that "ailed" him and work towards the welfare of the citizens of Delhi in the new year.
(With inputs from PTI)
