"Bizarre": Arvind Kejriwal On Lt Governor's Decisions As Delhi Civic Body Sees Brawl

As election of a mayor was staled because AAP and BJP members brawled at the first meeting of the newly elected Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Chief Minister and AAP boss Arvind Kejriwal said, "Strange things are happening in the governance of the capital of India", in another letter to the Lieutenant Governor appointed by the BJP's central government. 

The letter said it's "completely bizarre" that Mr Saxena been taking "illegal" and "unconstitutional" decisions on subjects he has "no powers" over. He said bureaucrats follow "illegal" orders, "bypassing and ignoring the elected government", because the Lt Governor "has complete control over the bureaucracy".

Earlier, chairs flew and tables were hurled at the MCD meet after AAP protested over the temporary speaker — appointed by the Lt Governor — swearing in the nominated members before the elected members.

In a tweet, Mr Kejriwal termed the move "unconstitutional" too.

My letter to Hon'ble LG

Pl allow the elected govt to fulfil dreams of 2 cr people. Lets respect the Constitution. Lets strengthen democracy. pic.twitter.com/UIHxmoPI6Q

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) January 6, 2023

In his letter as well, Mr Kejriwal cited the nomination of 10 members to the MCD and said the most senior member was not appointed the temporary Speaker for oath-taking but a BJP member was chosen instead. He'd said this in a letter on this specific issue yesterday too.

The letter today did not mention the MCD brawl expressly, but spoke of issues at the nub of it.

"Till date, for the last many decades, these 10 members were always nominated by the elected government of Delhi," the letter said, "This practice was followed by the previous LG Sh Anil Baijal also. However, the present LG, one morning, dictated 10 names (obviously all with BJP background) and directed the Chief Secretary to issue notification. Chief Secretary complied. Elected govt came to know from the newspapers."

He stressed that the Lt Governor legally has control only over three "reserved" subjects — police, public order and land — while all the rest are called "transferred" subjects and are with the elected government.

Mr Saxena has not reacted, though he has in the past said he well within his rights to issue orders. The complicated — and often confusing — division of powers in Delhi is the subject of ongoing court cases as well.   

Mr Kejriwal said further in the letter, "The government elected by the people with such thumping majority has been rendered irrelevant." Claiming that officers "have been protesting privately and in muted voice", he said they are "all very scared of consequences" if they don't follow the orders.

"Your Excellency, individuals like me and you are too small. This country is important. India is important. Our democracy, which we got after a long independence struggle, is important... The elected government is directly accountable to the people. Please allow [it] to work for the people. Let's respect the Constitution," he wrote.