AAP marches against ‘dictator’ L-G in Capital
NEWDELHI: Thousands of supporters of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and some from Left groups, marched from Mandi House to Parliament Street on Sunday to demand Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Anil Baijal’s intervention in ending the ongoing ‘strike’ of IAS officers.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and three of his cabinet colleagues — Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain and Gopal Rai — have been staging a ‘sit-in’ protest at Raj Niwas to demand that IAS officers of the city call off their alleged strike and that the L-G clears the “doorstep delivery of ration” scheme.
“If the L-G can’t meet with the ministers, let him at least ask the IAS officers to end their strike. Services are under him and strikes are not allowed according to the officers’ code of conduct,” said Sanjay Singh, senior AAP leader and the party’s Rajya Sabha MP. Singh led the protest march on Sunday.
On Sunday, the protesters marched against the “L-G’s dictatorship” and to press for full statehood for Delhi. Delhi Police, however, cordoned off the area near Parliament street and forced the protesters to disperse peacefully from there.
Delhi Police had earlier said that Sunday’s march was taken out without proper permission.
While an AAP leader estimated that around 50,000 people joined Sunday’s march, the Delhi Police claimed that the number was closer to 3,500.
“The amount of police mobilisation goes to show how scared they were of the protest. We were stopped far away from the PM’s residence... We have a history of non-violence and had no intention of bothering the cops. Afterall, they too are just doing their jobs and have to do what they are told by their bosses,” said Atishi Marlena, AAP member.
Sunday’s protest saw AAP minister Kailash Gehlot, Delhi Vidhan Sabha speaker Ram Niwas Goel, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sushil Gupta, AAP members Raghav Chaddha and Atishi Marlena, CPI(M) secretary Sitaram Yechury, and All India Progressive Women’s Association secretary Kavita Krishnan, among others, participating in it. Guest teachers, School Management Committee (SMC) members, and other associations like the Delhi Pradesh Valmiki Mazdoor Sangh, were also in attendance.
“CPM, CPI, CPI(ML), all attended the march... the Congress should learn (from these parties). In Uttarakhand, Manipur, wherever democracy was under threat, we stood with them. Here the Congress is speaking the language of the BJP,” said Sanjay Singh.
AAP workers said that the party had asked each of their MLAs to bring at least 200 people.