Baijal calls Kejriwal's dharna 'protest without basis'

Lt Governor Anil Baijal today termed Arvind Kejriwal's dharna a "protest without basis" and alleged that the chief minister was "more comfortable" with making baseless allegations against him.

He said that the protest was based on "unwarranted apprehensions" about the stalling of the CCTV project.

Over the alleged refusal to meet Kejriwal, his ministers and MLAs, Baijal said he agreed to meet the chief minister, his council of ministers and an MP, but "he preferred to sit on dharna and avoided constructive deliberations".

In a statement, Baijal said that no proposal was sent to him for installing CCTV cameras, and still the chief minister led the protest and "misled the public" on the issue.

Kejriwal and his colleagues sat on the 'dharna' after the police officials deployed at L-G Anil Baijal's office told the chief minister that he and his ministers can meet Baijal, but the AAP legislators will not be allowed to go with them.

Shortly after, Kejriwal, his ministers, legislators and AAP supporters sat on a 'dharna' barely 100 metres from Baijal's office in protest.

"Despite seeking time to meet the Lt Governor on the issue of installation of CCTV Cameras in Delhi, the CM and his council of ministers along with MLAs and one MP Sushil Gupta preferred to sit on dharna near Raj Niwas rather than meeting the L-G to articulate and resolve the issues for which they marched to the Raj Niwas," L-G office said in a statement.

The 'dharna' was held despite the fact that the L-G offered to meet the chief minister, his ministers and the MPs and had already clarified in yesterday's letter that no instructions had been given to stall or stop the award of work for installation of CCTV cameras by the elected government.

The chief minister was more comfortable with "making allegations against the LG without basis", the statement read.

"The chief minister conveniently ignored the actual fact that his own cabinet has not even as yet considered the departmental proposal for CCTVs," it read.

It is only after the cabinet's approval that such proposals are sent to the L-G and in this case, no such approval has been accorded by the cabinet and sent to the L-G for his consideration, it added.