L-G Baijal skips office; Kejriwal, 3 AAP ministers kept waiting

Amid a tug of war with the AAP dispensation, Lt Governor Anil Baijal did not come to office today, even as Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his three cabinet colleagues kept waiting for him at the L-G Secretariat to discuss their demands.

Sources said Baijal had meetings in the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry and other places, and this was why he could not come to office today.

Kejriwal along with his deputy Manish Sisodia and two other ministers -- Gopal Rai and Satyendar Jain -- had met the Lt Governor (L-G) at 5.30 pm yesterday and since then, they have stayed put at the L-G office.

 

Sisodia took to Twitter at 5.24 pm, saying, "L-G Sahab, chief minister and three ministers have been waiting for you in your waiting room for 24 hours, hoping that you (L-G) will do something (on our demands) while one minister is on hunger strike."

"What is your compulsion? Can't you (L-G) issue an order asking IAS officers to end your strike for the people of Delhi?" Sisodia tweeted in Hindi.

However, the L-G office provided tea and snacks to the chief minister and his cabinet colleagues during the day. Food was allowed from outside.

Last night, the chief minister, who is a diabetic, had to take insulin during the sit-in and got "specific food" from his home.

The cabinet ministers have been demanding that the L-G issue a direction to IAS officers to end their "strike" and take action against officers who have struck work for "four months".

IAS officers have been on strike since the alleged assault on Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash and are boycotting meetings with AAP ministers due to which public works are getting affected, according to the government.

However, the officers association claimed that no officer is on strike and no work has been affected.