The Delhi lieutenant general has returned a staggering 47 files to the chief minister’s office in what is being seen as another escalation of the tension between L-G Vinai Kumar Saxena and chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. According to sources, the L-G Secretariat pointed out that these files were signed by the CM’s staff and not Kejriwal himself. Among these returned files are those related to the education department and Delhi Waqf Board among others, sources added.
Sources said the files marked by junior officers to the L-G Secretariat had noting to the effect: “CM has seen and approved” and “CM has seen”. They added that this was in gross violation of laid down protocols, rules and regulations.
Responding to this, Delhi deputy CM Manish Sisodia said, “LG sahab has his own understanding; he should understand how governments are run in the country and this is a routine practice,” adding that it was the task of a “headmaster to point out where a comma or a full stop is missing”, and that the L-G “should behave like one”.
Just a day before Lieutenant Governor V.K Saxena had sought a report from Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar on the delay of 2.5 years in acting on the CVC inquiry report into the construction of additional classrooms in Delhi government schools. Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia struck a defiant note calling the move of the Lieutenant Governor Saxena’s scanner on alleged corruption in construction of class rooms in Delhi government schools, ‘ a drama’ and in turn alleged that 72747 government schools have been shut down between 2015 and 2021 as ‘ they want private model for schools’. ‘ It is their ( BJP’s) compliant, their ( BJP’s) investigating agencies, let them probe…there is no complaint, we have built excellent schools, they are saying why did you build excellent schools, you should have built poor schools, why did you build so many toilets, you should have built less toilets, is this a joke ?
On 22.08.2022, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena had written to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on the latter not signing files that were being sent to the LG Secretariat for consideration or approval. Sources day that even after LG V K Saxena, the Chief Minister or his office continued to send files without the chief minister’s signature. In a fresh move, LG Saxena has asked the CM to sign every file in the interest of smooth and effective governance, and also asked the Chief Minister to introduce the e-office system, prevalent in all most government offices now, so as to enable seamless movements of files.
Sources say that files without the signature of the chief minister being sent to the Lieutanant Governor’s office marks a departure from the past. Between 1993 till 2013, files were duly signed by Chief Ministers.
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