New Delhi: Taking its fight with Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung to the next level to assert who 'rules' in Delhi, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has cited a 2011 letter written by the then union home minister P Chidambaram to the city government.
The Arvind Kejriwal government cited the letter in the wake of Jung asserting that the 'government' in Delhi means the LG.
As per officials, Chidambaram had written the letter to the then chief minister Sheila Dikshit clarifying that the government in Delhi was to be run by elected representatives and that the LG was "bound" to act on the aid and advice of the Delhi government.
Chidambaram had written the letter on January 31, 2011 in response to the Delhi government's query on power to fix circle rates in the national capital.
Citing the then attorney general Goolam E Vahanvati's views, Chidambaram wrote that as per the Constitution, the government in Delhi means the Government of NCT.
"Hence the Government of Delhi has the right to fix the minimum rates and Lt Governor is bound to act on the aid and advice of the Government of Delhi (Council of Ministers in this regard). The LG is being advised accordingly in this matter," the letter stated, as per a leading English daily.
On Friday, Jung had hit out at Kejriwal saying he was "deeply disappointed" at Delhi Chief Minister's remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling them "inappropriate".
Jung also said that the remarks made in a letter to him, that is in public domain, do not reflect well on the Chief Minister and that it leads to "unsavoury" and "avoidable comments" not just within the country, but also overseas.
In his letter to Jung, Kejriwal had on Thursday alleged that the Lt Governor was working at the "behest" of Prime Minister.
Also, in an apparent attack at the PM, Delhi government had on Thursday put up posters across Delhi which read, "Prime Minister Sir, Please, let Delhi government work. Delhi government is working fine."
Since the Aam Aadmi Party has come to power, the Arvind Kejriwal government has been 'attacking' BJP-led Central government.
