AAP ministers laud role of bureaucrats in handling projects

New Delhi: Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Tuesday projected “taint-free” governance in Delhi, which he claimed has been achieved despite Centre’s “unprecedented hostility.”

On the completion of two years in office, the AAP government released a booklet detailing the work done in various sectors, which also contained a message from chief minister Arvind Kejriwal where he resisted “the temptation of offering any excuse for hurdles being created by the powers that be”. The document was released at an event at the Delhi Secretariat in presence of the council of ministers, chief secretary M.M. Kutty, AAP MLAs and officials.

Mr Kejriwal is undergoing naturopathy treatment in Bengaluru. The ministers, including Mr Sisodia, highlighted the major developments in their respective areas while Mr Kutty urged the officers to put their best foot forward in the days to come.

Words of mutual praise replaced the usual acrimony that marks this government’s relationship with the bureaucracy with Mr Sisodia and Gopal Rai lauding the role of officials in executing flagship projects.

“There may have been procedural differences and you can set Shunglu Committee, put the CBI after us but you cannot question our financial probity. We have not bent even once despite pressure and offers to that effect. we have withstood unprecedented level of hostility too. Never in the past has the Supreme Court has had to use such language against the Delhi Police and the CBI for framing false cases,” Mr Sisodia said.

The AAP government, following a stupendous victory in the 2015 Assembly polls where it bagged 67 out of 70 seats of the Delhi Assembly, had taken oath at Ramlila Maidan on February 14. Contrary to its claims, the AAP government, however, is yet to implement some of its key schemes including Wi-Fi in public zones, installing 10-15 lakh CCTV cameras across Delhi, bringing a law for devolution of power to mohallas and setting up subsidised canteens.

In his speech, Mr Sisodia briefly touched upon the issue of Wifi, saying connecting a populous city like Delhi through wireless Internet was challenging. In any case, this promise was to be fulfilled in five years, “not two years”, he said. “Work is in progress on this front. We have zeroed in on few models,” he said.

In 2015, Mr Kejriwal had removed Asim Ahmed Khan as minister after allegations of him demanding bribe surfaced. Mr Sisodia said the scale of the victory was indicative people’s desire for a radical change. The AAP has managed to change the way of governance and has managed to plug the disconnect between the common man and the administration.

Mr Rai drew parallel of Kejriwal with ‘Eklvaya’, a character in the Mahabharata, in claiming that the AAP government is marching forward despite the Centre “clipping its wings” and “creating hurdles” in the way of smooth governance.