Arvind Kejriwal fires fresh salvo, calls Najeeb Jung Hitler

New Delhi: Lashing out at lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung over appointment of IAS officer Dilraj Kaur as member secretary of Delhi Commission for Women, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday likened Mr Jung to “Hitler.”

“L-G is acting like Hitler, following in footsteps of his masters, Mr Modi and Amit Shah...Najeeb Jung has sold his soul to the Prime Minister,” Mr Kejriwal said in a series of tweets.

Ms Kaur, secretary (social welfare), was on Tuesday given the additional charge as member secretary of DCW by the L-G. The appointment has emerged as yet another flashpoint between the L-G and the Aam Aadmi Party government. Interestingly, Ms Kaur’s appointment came just a few days after the Delhi CM had termed as “unconstitutional” the earlier appointment of Alka Diwan to the same post, saying that the L-G had overlooked the name suggested by the government.

DCW chief Swati Maliwal too slammed Mr Jung’s move terming it an attempt to attack the “autonomy and independence” of the Commission. “The appointment of Ms Kaur is an attempt to attack the autonomy and independence of the Commission. The L-G is scuttling the functioning of the Commission,” Ms Maliwal said. She also alleged that appointment is “unconstitutional” as it did not follow the nomination process from the government. “The appointment of the member secretary is unconstitutional and illegal as due procedure has not been followed. The nomination by the Delhi government and its concurrence, which is a prerequisite for the appointment of the member secretary has not been taken,” Ms Maliwal said in a statement. She added that the DCW will be appealing to the President, seeking his intervention in the matter.

Ms Maliwal said DCW “does not accept” Ms Kaur’s appointment because she continues to be secretary (department of women and child development) and the commission almost constantly issues notices to it on issues relating to serious lapses in shelter homes like Nari Niketan, Nirmal Chaya etc, development of rehabilitation scheme for victims, creation of crèches and monitors its various functions.

She claimed the LG had earlier unilaterally made the appointment of Alka Dewan as the member secretary during whose tenure three month’s salaries of entire contractual staff of the Commission, many of whom have been working since 1998, were “withheld”.

“In the entire history of DCW, member secretaries have always been appointed with concurrence of elected government. DCW strongly condemns the attempts made by the LG to strangulate the Commission. The LG should focus on ensuring safety of women and children in Delhi and not concentrate his energies on devising new ways to scuttle the functioning of the DCW,” she said.

Reacting to Mr Kejriwal’s tweet, Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari said that the political frustration of Mr Kejriwal is growing day by day and due to this he is also losing his mental balance. “This frustration is resulting in repeated violation of constitutional propriety and campaign based on half truths against political opponents. Mr Kejriwal’s tweet on the Lieutenant Governor or his earlier tweets they all reflect his political frustration. Slowly but steadily Mr Kejriwal’s political desperation is increasing,” added Mr Tiwari.