New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi Minister Atishi on Thursday warned the BJP-led central government against imposing the President’s Rule in the national captal, stating that such a move would be ”illegal, unconstitutional and against the mandate of the people.” “Let me warn the BJP that imposing President’s rule in Delhi will be illegal, unconstitutional and against the mandate of the people of Delhi. The people of Delhi have given a clear mandate to Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party,” the AAP leader said.

#WATCH | Delhi Minister & AAP leader Atishi says, “Let me warn the BJP that imposing President’s rule in Delhi will be illegal, unconstitutional and against the mandate of the people of Delhi. The people of Delhi have given a clear mandate to Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party.” pic.twitter.com/IbcVTnpkNK
— ANI (@ANI) April 12, 2024

Referring to the Lieutenant Governor’s letter to the Union Home Secretary, Atishi said, ”The officers of Delhi govt has stopped attending the meeting… All these things show that there is a conspiracy to topple the govt of Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi and to implement the president’s rule…”

Atishi also attacked the poll body and questioned its double standards. “When the Bharatiya Janata Party complains against the Aam Aadmi Party, the Election Commission sends notice within 12 hours. But when it comes to a complaint against Bharatiya Janata Party to the Election Commission, even after 48 hours, there has been no notice issued against them,” Delhi Minister Atishi said.

The response from Atishi came after the Lieutenant Governor’s office wrote a letter to the Centre on Monday alleging a “lack of cooperation” from Delhi government ministers.

The letter was written in the wake of CM Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest and subsequent events, especially those related to public health infrastructure in the city, the impeding Summer Action Plan for water availability, etc. playing out in the public domain.

“Lt. Governor had decided to convene a meeting of key Ministers of GNCTD dealing with departments of Water, Education, Health, Transport Environment and forest, etc. The LG had asked for a meeting with the ministers twice, on March 29, 2024 and April 2, 2024,” it stated.

“However, Ministers of GNCTD, especially Health Minister, Saurabh Bharadwaj, under fire from the Delhi High Court over lack of health infrastructure in the city, instead of solving issues, indulged in public mud-slinging and refused to meet the Lt. Governor, citing lame excuses. Bharadwaj, upon being asked for a meeting on March 29, 2024, sent a text to the LG Secretariat that read, “We wanted agenda for this meeting with LG I do not think a meeting can be called without the direction of CM. Please convey.” Upon being shared the agenda for the meeting to be reconvened on April 2, 2024, Bharadwaj made the lame excuse of MCC being in effect, despite his colleagues going public with a supposed letter from the CM from ED custody, asking Ministers to take the advice of the LG if necessary in solving public issues,” it stated.

The letter also highlighted CM Kejriwal’s note from ED custody to Ministers Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj; “In both cases, questions were raised as to how such notes can be written in ED custody.”

“Other key ministers of GNCTD – Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot and Atishi Marlena have also shown a lack of seriousness and insensitivity and declined to attend the meeting with LG VK Saxena on the matters affecting the day-to-day lives of the citizens of Delhi in the aftermath of the arrest of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal,” the letter from the LG Secretariat to MHA reads.

The letter said that ministers were intimated to attend the meeting convened by the LG concerning the departments of water, education, health, transport, environment and forest, etc, but all of them, vide e-mails, declined to attend the meeting on the specious ground that since the Model Code of Conduct is in force, it would not be appropriate to convene such a meeting.

The letter by the Principal Secretary to the LG stated that the LG believes that a consultation of this nature is warranted so that the routine works of governance are not hampered in the backdrop of the arrest and detention of the Chief Minister but curiously, the ministers chose to disregard the public importance of the subjects under discussion.

The rationale adduced for not attending the meeting appears vague and exhibits a lack of seriousness and insensitivity to matters affecting the day-to-day lives of the citizens of Delhi, the LG secretariat said.

This communication by the LG Secretariat to the Union Home Secretary assumes significance as on April 4, Bharadwaj who had declined to attend the meeting convened by Saxena, had written a note to him highlighting the severe shortage of basic medical supplies at Dr. Hedgewar Arogya Sansthan and Chacha Nehru Bal Chikitsalaya.

The next day, the LG shot back, expressing deep concerns regarding the “deteriorating” state of the ‘Delhi Model’ of healthcare delivery, likening it to being on a “life support ventilator”.

The LG had reminded Bharadwaj of disregarding his invitations to discuss critical healthcare issues and criticised his tendency to deflect responsibility and propagate misleading narratives.

While Kejriwal was in the ED custody, Atishi Marlena claimed that the Chief Minister had written a note to her to take care of the issues of water and sewage in the national capital and, if necessary, take advice from the LG.

“Curiously, the Hon’ble Ministers chose to disregard the public importance of subjects under discussion. The rationale adduced for not attending the meeting appears vague and exhibits lack of seriousness and insensitivity to matters affecting the day-to-day lives of the citizens of Delhi,” the letter stated.