Will Delhi LG Anil Baijal Allow Kejriwal to Work?
AAP refers to an ambiguous judgment of the Supreme Court of India to take away administrative powers from LG Anil Baijal.
By Rakesh Raman
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) headed by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal stated today that it has decided to accelerate its campaign to achieve full statehood for Delhi.
An AAP spokesman claimed today that so far 152,000 citizens have participated in its signature campaign for the purpose. However, he did not offer any evidence of the participation.
AAP plans to hold a meeting on Sunday (July 15) with its leaders and party workers to intensify its campaign for Delhi’s statehood while Delhi is currently a union territory with Lt. Governor (LG) Anil Baijal as the administrative head for the city-state.
The ruling AAP government believes that LG Baijal – who has been handpicked by PM Narendra Modi – is not allowing it to work independently and creating obstacles in its work.
AAP refers to an ambiguous judgment of the Supreme Court of India to take away administrative powers from the LG. The judgment issued last week aimed to define the responsibilities of LG and chief minister of Delhi.
[ क्या केजरीवाल की दिल्ली के लिए पूर्ण राज्य की मांग उचित है? ]
Kejriwal and his political colleagues claim that the court has given them full powers to take decisions in all cases except three reserved subjects: land, police, and public order. But they assert LG Baijal is still not ready to share authority with Kejriwal government.
Delhi bureaucrats have also refused to accept the court decision saying that it is not applicable to them, although Kejriwal screamed it amounts to contempt of court.
While Kejriwal and Delhi bureaucrats had their own interpretations of the Supreme Court judgment, the opposition parties such as BJP and Congress offered totally different versions, adding more ambiguity to the court order.
Delhi citizens approx 1,52,000 signed our signature campaign in support of ‘Delhi to be full statehood.’
Watch full Press Conference 👇https://t.co/VOax8mQQFi— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) July 12, 2018
Now AAP believes that only the full statehood for Delhi can put an end to its mounting troubles. The statehood issue can only be discussed in the Parliament of India, which is again controlled by Modi’s party BJP. So, AAP’s problems will persist.
By Rakesh Raman, who is a national award-winning journalist and social activist. He is the founder of a humanitarian organization RMN Foundation which is working in diverse areas to help the disadvantaged and distressed people in the society.
