Kejriwal Government in fresh trouble with Centre over officers' suspension

As more than 200 officers have taken mass leave in protest on Thursday, the  Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has cried foul, alleging that it is the result of a conspiracy.

The officers are protesting against the Delhi government's decision to suspend two senior civil service officers of the Home Department for refusing to sign a file pertaining to the Cabinet decision to increase salary of public prosecutors.

 Following the government's decision, around 200 DANICS-cadre officers have taken mass leave on Thursday to show their solidarity with the officers. As per sources, even IAS suspended officers-Special Secretary (Prosecution) Yashpal Garg and Special Secretary (Prisons) Subhash Chandra.

The Kejriwal government's decision precipitates the situation inviting a fresh trouble with the Centre  as only the Delhi Lt Governor can suspend DANICS-cadre officers with permission from the Union Home Ministry.


"Delhi government does not have power to suspend any DANICS officer and it can only recommend suspension of DANICS officer and on this, L-G can suspend him or her with permission from MHA. To express solidarity with the two suspended officers, around 200 DANICS officers, who are working in government's different departments, will go on leave tomorrow for one day," a representative of the association said.

It has apprised Union Home Minister of the development. It also demanded that the Delhi government revoke the suspension. Reacting to DANICS officers' Association's move, the government spokesperson said, "We have not got any official communication from the association. If they want to go on leave, they can do so."

The latest episode only added fuel to the simmering dispute between the AAP and BJP over several issues, including the targeting of BJP stalwart and Union Fiance Minister Arun Jaitley by Kejriwal over the DDCA cricket administration scam. 

Kejriwal accused the ruling BJP of using all central agencies to target him and declared: "Kejriwal is not scared of the CBI, order any inquiry against me."

Challenging the CBI to "send 100 officers to the Delhi Secretariat and look into every file in my office", the Chief Minister recently reiterated that the reason for the raid was a file on details of alleged corruption in Delhi's cricket body DDCA (Delhi and District Cricket Administration), which was headed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for 13 years till 2013.

He also alleged that a senior journalist told him that his wife was told by a DDCA official to "come at night" if they wanted their son to be in the Delhi cricket team. The journalist, he said, was ready to testify at an inquiry. But Mr Kejriwal offered no proof of the allegation.