New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said he had "never been disappointed" with bureaucrats and always tried to see the best in them, provoking instant comparison with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who had warned two days ago - "work with us or quit and face us in polls".
Addressing a gathering of officials at an event to mark Civil Services Day, the prime minister said: "I have never had to raise my voice to a bureaucrat. I never had a bitter experience with a bureaucrat."
PM Modi's tenor was strikingly different from that of Mr Kejriwal, a former bureaucrat who joined politics in 2012.
"We can tolerate anything but we will not tolerate politics. If you are interested in politics, then resign, contest elections and confront us," he said in what was widely interpreted as a warning.
He also cautioned bureaucrats against any politics with elected representatives, saying: "We know how to deal with such bureaucrats."
In contrast, Mr Kejriwal, a former taxman, has been struggling to get along with the bureaucracy, mainly because of his Aam Aadmi Party's constant tussle with the Centre over the control of key departments in Delhi.
Alleging a conspiracy in the strike, timed just before the odd-even trial, Mr Kejriwal called the officers "full-fledged B-teams of the BJP".
Addressing a gathering of officials at an event to mark Civil Services Day, the prime minister said: "I have never had to raise my voice to a bureaucrat. I never had a bitter experience with a bureaucrat."
PM Modi's tenor was strikingly different from that of Mr Kejriwal, a former bureaucrat who joined politics in 2012.
"We can tolerate anything but we will not tolerate politics. If you are interested in politics, then resign, contest elections and confront us," he said in what was widely interpreted as a warning.
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He also cautioned bureaucrats against any politics with elected representatives, saying: "We know how to deal with such bureaucrats."
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In contrast, Mr Kejriwal, a former taxman, has been struggling to get along with the bureaucracy, mainly because of his Aam Aadmi Party's constant tussle with the Centre over the control of key departments in Delhi.
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Alleging a conspiracy in the strike, timed just before the odd-even trial, Mr Kejriwal called the officers "full-fledged B-teams of the BJP".
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