The AAP has accused Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena of interfering in the Delhi Government's work and forgetting his remit. In its latest dig at Lieutenant Governor, the AAP on Sunday said it appeared that the Centre had sent him to meddle with the Arvind Kejriwal Government's work and stay away from law and order. This is the third attack on Lieutenant Governor since he assumed the office at Raj Niwas
Addressing a press conference, Aam Aadmi Party MLA Atishi alleged that Saxena did not act pro-actively on some heinous crimes that took place in the city since he assumed office a few days ago, but he had been "interfering" in the Delhi Government's business.
"After taking oath, he had said that he is not a person to sit in air-conditioned offices and he will be on the ground. In the last 10 days, several heinous crimes have taken place in the national capital," she said.
"On May 27, an auto-rickshaw driver was stabbed to death in Sangam Vihar. Did he visit the Sangam Vihar police station," she asked. Atishi also referred to the alleged sexual harassment of a woman in Jor Bagh and a police officer's alleged brawl with a woman, and asked why the LG did not act stern in these cases.
“ Did the LG investigate the Jor Bagh Metro Station Incident where a woman was sexually harassed; did he go to the metro station with Delhi Police,” she said. The AAP leader further said: “Has the LG issued even a single order to the Delhi Police since assuming office?
“Does he even know the horror women have had to face in the last few days? Delhi Police’s DCP-Dwarka assaulted a woman in front of everyone at a restaurant in Kailash colony; but the LG did not call a single meeting or take any action. It seems that he has been asked by the Centre to stay away from the issue of law and order and has been given a mandate to meddle in the affairs of the Kejriwal-led Delhi government," she said.
The tussle between the AAP and the LG started last Wednesday when some AAP MLAs accused him of of intruding in the Delhi government's work. The AAP then had said that since Saxena was a newcomer, perhaps he was not aware of the constitutional provisions for governing the NCT of Delhi.
On Saturday, the AAP had again accused Saxena of interference and in "conspiring" to derail democracy as he visited two Delhi Jal Board facilities and a sewage treatment plant, a measure the Kejriwal-led party said was beyond his jurisdiction. The allegation comes a day after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal met Saxena and announced he will meet him every Friday for better coordination to address the city's issues.