New Delhi: The sit-in by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his three cabinet colleagues on Saturday entered its sixth day as impasse between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) dispensation and the Lt Governor over IAS officers' "strike" continued.
Health minister Satyendar Jain and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who along with Kejriwal and Development Minister Gopal Rai have stayed put at L-G office since Monday evening, have been sitting on hunger strike since Tuesday and Wednesday respectively.
On Friday, Kejriwal asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to work with his officers not attending his meetings. He had challenged the Prime Minister on the issue of alleged "strike" by IAS workers and challenged him to work without the officers attending his meetings. "How do we work like this? Can Modi ji try working like this even for a day? Can our critics kindly tell us how do we function like this? (sic)," Kejriwal had tweeted after Delhi Environment Minister Imran Hussain alleged that environment secretary did not attend a meeting on pollution.
How do we work like this? Can Modi ji try working like this even for a day? Can our critics kindly tell us how do we function like this? https://t.co/HY2CH9MZXZ
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) June 15, 2018
In his letter to Modi on Friday, Kejriwal urged him to end IAS officers' strike so that he can attend a meeting of NITI Aayog on Sunday. Kejriwal along with his ministers is demanding that he (PM) direct IAS officers to end their "strike" and approve doorstep ration delivery scheme.
However, the IAS officers' association has maintained that no officer is on "strike". Also, Sisodia on Friday released a video warning that if they are forcibly removed from the L-G Secretariat, they will stop drinking water too.
अà¤-र LG साहब ज़बरदसà¥à¤¤à¥€ अनशन तà¥à¤¡à¤¼à¤µà¤¾à¤¨à¥‡ की कोशिश करेंà¤-े तो पानी à¤à¥€ तà¥à¤¯à¤¾à¤- दूà¤à¤-ा :- @msisodia pic.twitter.com/BjRbapNOp9
— Sanjeev Jha (@Sanjeev_aap) June 15, 2018
Big contingent of Doctors at LG’s waiting room conducting check up of @SatyendarJain & Dy CM @msisodia .. #AAP fears fasting ministers may be forcefully evicted from the protest room. Manish Sisodia has warned LG if they are removed will even give up drinking water to protest. pic.twitter.com/oXKHokbhB5
— Ankit Tyagi (@Ankit_Tyagi01) June 15, 2018
Sources said that the L-G, who has been working from his residence after the sit-in by AAP ministers, has constituted three teams of doctors to examine the health of ministers.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Friday agreed to hear on June 18 a plea seeking direction to the L-G to ensure that the alleged 'informal strike' by IAS officers of Delhi was called off and they perform their duties as public servants.
Also Read: Delhi HC to hear plea against CM Arvind Kejriwal's strike on June 18
The petition comes in the backdrop of another plea filed on Thursday in the court seeking that the sit-in by Kejriwal and his cabinet colleagues at the LG office against the "strike" by the IAS officers be declared unconstitutional and illegal. This plea against Kejriwal's sit-in was also listed for hearing for June 18.
