Kejriwal should stop his theatrics

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s latest protest against Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal over administrative issues is yet another chapter in the AAP leader’s theatrics of the absurd. He and three other Cabinet colleagues have not left the L-G’s office since they went there last Monday evening, allegedly because Baijal has not met their two demands: the alleged strike by IAS officers of the Delhi government and the doorstep delivery of ration to the people.

That IAS officers have launched a virtual non-cooperation movement against the AAP government is an open secret in Delhi. Many of the officers have been at loggerheads with the ministers for months now. But the ministers are squarely to blame for this. Many of the AAP regime’s policies and schemes for the benefit of the people are sound and praiseworthy. But the manner in which they are sought to be implemented, bypassing rules of governance and administrative norms, has become a regular feature. Another flashpoint is the manner in which some ministers treat the civil servants. There are many instances of the officials being insulted and browbeaten, leading to clashes on several occasions.

This is not the first time Kejriwal has resorted to such drama as CM. He first held a dharna some years back against Baijal’s predecessor Najeeb Jung. On that occasion Kejriwal sat in protest at Boat Club in the heart of Delhi during the peak of winter. During the day he would sit in protest in the open and at night, would curl up inside his personal car. Delhi has not witnessed such a clash between the L-G and the CM before Kejriwal’s chief ministership.

During Sheila Dikshit’s first term in office—she was the CM for a record 15 years—the NDA led by A B Vajpayee was in power at the Centre. Yet many potentially contentious policies such as the privatisation of power distribution and the introduction of CNG in public transport were successfully implemented. The sooner Kejriwal sheds his activism and gets down to the business of governance, the better it will be for his party and the people of Delhi.