In this file photo dated June 11, 2018, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders Satyendra Kumar Jain and Gopal Rai during a sit-in protest at Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijals residence, in New Delhi. (PTI Photo)
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his three cabinet colleagues continued their sit-in at Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s office as it entered its sixth day as impasse between AAP and Lt Governor over IAS officers’ ‘strike’ persisted. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Health minister Satyendar Jain, Development Minister Gopal Rai and Arvind Kejriwal have stayed put at the L-G’s office since Monday evening.
During the sit-in protest, the Delhi chief minister also announced a door-to-door campaign to press for their demand for statehood.
On Friday, Kejriwal had challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to work without the officers attending his meetings. Kejriwal had tweeted, “How do we work like this? Can Modi ji try working like this even for a day? Can our critics kindly tell us how do we function like this? (sic).”
In his letter to Modi yesterday, Kejriwal urged him to end IAS officers’ strike so that he can attend a meeting of NITI Aayog on Sunday. Kejriwal along with his ministers is demanding that he (PM) direct IAS officers to end their ‘strike’ and approve doorstep ration delivery scheme. “We have been here for five days and you have been standing by and letting BJP leaders take over the Secretariat, instead of ensuring that the IAS officers’ strike ends,” he added. Alleging that L-G Anil Baijal had done “nothing” to end the “strike” despite repeated pleas, Kejriwal said, “I am surprised that it is the fifth day and he (Baijal) is not willing to end it.”
Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodia with ministers Satyendar Jain and Gopal Rai at the L-G office (Express Photo)
However, the IAS officers’ association has maintained that no officer is on ‘strike’. Also, Sisodia on Friday released a video warning that if they are forcibly removed from the L-G Secretariat, they will stop drinking water too.
Sources told PTI that the L-G has constituted three teams of doctors to examine the health of ministers.
In the meantime, the Delhi High Court on Friday agreed to hear on June 18 a plea seeking direction to the L-G to ensure that the alleged ‘informal strike’ by IAS officers of Delhi was called off and they perform their duties as public servants.