AAP cries foul as 9 advisors axed

Tussle with Centre set to escalate, Sisodia calls it ‘ conspiracy to derail education revolution’ PM Modi has decided to undermine the Delhi’s education system that is why this order has been issued Manish Sisodia, Deputy CM ◗ The Union home ministry cla

The AAP government and the BJP- led Centre is all set for another major confrontation with the general administration department ( GAD) of the city government after cancelling appointments of nine key functionaries on Tuesday. The orders to this effect were issued following clarification from the Union home ministry that these posts had been approved without taking prior permission from the Centre.

The ones whose appointments have been cancelled are deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia’s advisors Atishi Marlena and Raghav Chaddha, his media advisor Arunoday Prakash, law minister Kailash Gahlot’s media advisor Amar Deep Tiwari, power, health and PWD minister Satyendra Jain’s consultants Prashant Saxena and Samir Malhotra, his aidedecamp Rajat Tiwari, his OSD Brigadier Dinkar Adeeb ( Retd), and GAD minister Gopal Rai’s advisor Ram Kumar Jha.

Reacting sharply to the GAD order, Mr Sisodia said this was a clear attempt to destabilise the AAP government’s pioneering achievements in the education sector that had received wide applause. He said the Narendra Modi government’s order was a “conspiracy to derail” the “education revolution” in Delhi.

“Prime Minister Modi has decided to undermine the Delhi’s education system that is why this order has been issued today,” Mr Sisodia alleged. Speaking in favour of Ms Marlena, he said she was an accomplished scholar working with the city government on a token salary of ` 1 only.

The latest order is bound to set another face- off between the Centre and the AAP government, which has time and again accused the former of using lieutenant- governor ( L- G) Anil Baijal’s office in creating hurdles in its daytoday functioning and policy making.

The AAP government had also alleged that it was not even allowed to choose officers of its choice to run the different ministries.

Even chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s office is facing acute shortage of bureaucrats ever since his former principal secretary, Rajendra Kumar, was arrested by the CBI. Since Mr Kumar’s arrest in 2016, no senior IAS officer has been deputed to the CM’s office. Recently, Prashant Kumar Panda, one of the two Danics officers who had been posted by the L- G as secretaries to the CM, was transferred to Puducherry following orders of the MHA.

In its order, the GAD said that the Union home ministry had clarified that the AAP government had not taken prior approval for the appointment of the nine appointees who were officiating on their respective posts.

Further, no prior approval of the Central government had been taken for creation of the said posts on which these persons had been appointed on co- terminus basis.

—