After treatment, Kejriwal resumes work Tuesday

After undergoing naturopathy treatment in Bengaluru for 10 long days, a "fit and fresh" Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal resumed work on Tuesday.

Simultaneously, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also mounted efforts to overcome the fissures within, involving known Kejriwal loyalists on the one hand and senior leaders Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan on the other.

Kejriwal held a range of meetings with his six cabinet ministers, apart from having a long discussion with Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, a long-time confidant.

"He met all the ministers. He was apprised of all the decisions taken during his absence," a government official told IANS.

Kejriwal, who holds no portfolio, returned here on Monday night, cured of his chronic cough and high blood sugar.

"He also took stock of the achievements of his government in its first month in office," the official added.

Kejriwal became chief minister on February 14 after the AAP swept the Delhi assembly election, bagging an incredible 67 of the 70 seats.

On Tuesday, the chief minister, who still lives at Kaushambi in Ghaziabad bordering Delhi, reached his office around 10.30 a.m.

After spending some time at the Secretariat, Kejriwal and Sisodia along with Yadav appeared at the Karkadooma court in connection with a defamation case.

It was when he returned to the secretariat that the AAP chief met his ministers to review the work done by them in his absence.

Earlier, Kejriwal's loyalists have reached out to Yadav.

AAP leaders Sanjay Singh, Kumar Vishwas and Ashish Khetan met Yadav at the latter's residence to discuss the recent turmoil in the party that led to the exit of Yadav and Prashant Bhushan from the AAP's top body.

The meeting took place late on Monday night after Kejriwal's return to Delhi. Kejriwal didn't take part in the meeting.

"We met and discussed the issues. We will definitely let you know if something constructive happens," Sanjay Singh told the media while voicing hopes of a positive outcome in the future.

At the meeting that lasted for over an hour, Yadav was apprised of Kejriwal's displeasure over some of the issues that exposed the cracks in the AAP, informed sources told IANS.

Yadav said: "The meeting was good. We will continue to have parleys and will inform the media once we reach some conclusion."

The Kejriwal camp is also likely to meet Bhushan, the sources said.

On his part, Bhushan expressed best wishes for Kejriwal's speedy recovery and said he planned to meet him and try sort out the rift within.

Bhushan is a senior Supreme Court advocate and a founder member of the AAP, India's youngest political party. Yadav is a known political pundit.

Within a fortnight of taking power in Delhi on February 14, the AAP was hit by internal differences.

By majority vote, the party axed Yadav and Bhushan from the Political Affairs Committee (PAC), its highest decision making body.

This led to further disaffection, with Yadav and Bhushan making references to the need for internal democracy in the AAP. Known Kejriwal supporters in the party mounted further attacks on them.

But the accusations and counter-accusations eased in recent days, and voices calling for a truce in the AAP became louder.

Kejriwal denounced the infighting before going away to Bengaluru for naturopathy treatment to cure his persistent cough and high level of blood sugar, made worse by the hectic election campaign in Delhi.

He returned to Delhi late on Monday, cured of both the problems, saying he was "fresh and fit" and eager to resume work.