Manish Sisodia and Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP Criticize Lt Governor Amid Flag Hoisting Dispute

The General Administration Department, under Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, has termed Mr. Kejriwal’s decision regarding the hoisting of the flag as “invalid.” A decision on who will hoist the flag is awaited, according to the department. In response, the ruling AAP has criticized GAD’s stance, labeling it as “petty politics.”

They argued that there should be no problem if an elected minister hoists the flag. Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai recently met Chief Minister Kejriwal, who is currently in Tihar jail in connection with a corruption case related to Delhi’s now-scrapped liquor policy. Following this, Mr. Rai requested GAD to make arrangements for the flag to be hoisted by Atishi Marlena in place of Mr. Kejriwal.

However, GAD maintained that Mr. Kejriwal cannot authorize Ms. Atishi to hoist the national flag on his behalf. GAD additional chief secretary Navin Kumar Chaudhary stated that the Chief Minister’s direction is “legally invalid and cannot be acted upon.” Subsequently, Mr. Kejriwal wrote to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, but his office claimed to not have received any such communication.

Tihar jail authorities later informed Mr. Kejriwal that his letter was considered an “abuse of privileges” granted to him under the Delhi Prison Rules and was not sent to Mr. Saxena. GAD emphasized the importance of celebrating Independence Day with the appropriate respect and stated that no other authority can take the place of the Delhi Chief Minister. The department is coordinating with all concerned departments for the Independence Day celebrations at Chhatrasal Stadium, and the matter of the Chief Minister’s absence has been raised with higher authorities, according to an official statement.

Former Deputy Chief Minister criticized the treatment of Mr. Kejriwal’s letter compared to that of conman Sukesh, who has written open letters targeting AAP leaders. The Lieutenant Governor’s office should have ensured that Mr. Kejriwal’s letter was delivered, he argued. Atishi spoke to the media, expressing concern that the Lieutenant Governor is obstructing the elected government of Delhi from hoisting the flag, questioning whether the BJP is standing with democracy or dictatorship.