AAP govt says order not followed,defiant official switched off phone

NEW DELHI: If anyone was hoping for things to settle down in the national capital after the Supreme Court gave its verdict in the dispute between the lieutenant governor and the AAP government over services, the hope was belied on Friday.
Even as Delhi government once again approached the Supreme Court to claim that the LG was not approving the transfer of the services secretary, Ashish More, and was in contempt of the court's order, it raised questions about the behaviour of the bureaucrat, alleging that "possibly under the influence of the central government", he was defying the state government.
Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said he will constitute a bench to hear the matter next week.
Meanwhile, the government expressed its annoyance with the way things were unfolding, recalling that chief minister Arvind Kejriwal wanted to appoint "competent and honest officers in key positions" and wanted to remove those who have been "impeding the progress of welfare programmes".
"To initiate the large-scale administrative reshuffling, services minister Saurabh Bhardwaj instructed services secretary Ashish More to present a file for the transfer of a new officer to the post of secretary in the services department. However, More unexpectedly left the secretariat without notifying the minister's office, rendering himself unreachable while his phone also remained switched off," said a statement issued by the office of the services minister.
"It has been brought to the attention of the services secretary that failure to comply with the orders of the Supreme Court would potentially be considered contempt of court," it added.
The statement said that the special secretary of the services department had sent a communication to the minister, indicating that the MHA notification, dated May 21, 2015, has not yet been set aside. He had not even initiated a file for posting a new officer, it said.
The apex court had ruled on Thursday that the elected government in Delhi has legislative and executive powers over services department matters, barring those related to land, police and public order that come under the jurisdiction of the LG.
The AAP government had initiated the process to remove More from his post hours after the SC gave it control over the transfer and posting of officers in the city.
AAP's Rajya Sabha MP, Sanjay Singh, said the court's order was very clear on the fact that the Delhi government has complete control - except for three departments - and that it has complete power over transfers and postings. "The LG would be bound by the decision of the ministry and the Vidhan Sabha will have the power to make law. But you want to continue your dictatorship," he said.
"The Delhi LG is arrogant and has proved that he does not believe in the Constitutional bench of Supreme Court....So can such an LG remain on his post? Such a person should be removed. If you are not following the Supreme Court order, it's a constitutional crisis," he said.
The office of the lieutenant governor did not respond to the allegations.