Dlhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at an event last week. (Press Trust of India)
Delhi Home Secretary Dharam Pal is the latest top bureaucrat caught in the crossfire as Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal does battle with Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung over control in the capital.
Mr Kejriwal has shot off a letter to the Union Home Ministry, which has canceled his order to transfer the Home Secretary, saying he is "within his right to surrender Dharam Pal back to the Home Ministry."
The chief minister has emphasised in his letter that he is playing by the book and has not appointed anyone to take the place of Mr Dharam Pal and that an officer called Rajinder Kumar has only been given additional charge till a new home secretary is picked.
Mr Kejriwal has also said that he will duly consult the Union Home Ministry before appointing a new Home Secretary for Delhi.
This morning, the Ministry of Home Affairs cancelled the Delhi government order transferring Mr Dharam Pal. It called his removal "void" and ordered him to join back as Principal Secretary Home in Delhi. In doing so it backed the stand of the Lieutenant Governor, whose office had earlier said that Mr Dharam Pal's removal did not stand.
But Delhi Home Minister Satendar Jain has directed officers in his ministry not to send files to Mr Dharam Pal. The state government has made clear that it will route its files through Rajender Kumar.
The Delhi government had issued transfer orders to Mr Dharam Pal two days ago for signing a notification that appointed a senior Delhi police officer MK Meena as the head of its Anti Corruption Branch. Through dint of seniority Mr Meena, a joint commissioner, superceded an officer handpicked by Mr Kejriwal to head the anti-corruption unit.
The Kejriwal government attempted to stop Mr Meena from taking over, but the police officer said he had been appointed by the "competent authority" - Mr Jung - and had already taken over. He has threatened legal action if there is an attempt to "interfere" in the working of the ACB.
Mr Kejriwal is engaged in a bitter turf battle with Mr Jung in Delhi, which is not a full state and so key functions are controlled by the Centre through the L-G.
Policing in Delhi is controlled by the Centre through the L-G and the Delhi Government is not authorized to send back officers to the Centre. The L-G can move around officers and for that he need not always consult the Delhi chief minister.
The decision to send back officers is taken through a Joint Cadre Authority comprising the Home Secretary of Delhi and the Chief Secretaries of Goa, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram.