Sisodia joins AAP hunger strike

The AAP government further escalated its stand-off with the NDA government and Lt Governor Anil Baijal as Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday joined his Cabinet colleague Satyender Jain for a hunger strike.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his colleagues Sisodia, Jain and Gopal have been camping inside Lt governor's official residence since Monday evening and have not left the premises demanding a direction from Baijal to IAS officers to end their "strike", action against those who have struck work for "four months" and approval for doorstep delivery of rations.

The AAP received support from non-Congress Opposition parties like the NCP, Samajwadi Party, CPM and the RLD. Top RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary said, "Can't government-appointed officials meet an elected chief minister for five minutes in three days? Without the Centre's nod, this will not happen. This is governance failure. This is not insulting Arvind Kejriwal but the insult of a popular mandate."

Senior CPM leader and Kerala Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac said, "Union Territories like Delhi, with legislatures, should be given the status of states. The L-G rule in Delhi must end. It is a shame on Indian democracy that an elected CM and colleagues have to sit on all night dharna at L-G office."

As Sisodia joined the hunger strike, Kejriwal tweeted: "Central government using IAS officers as a tool to provoke a rebellion against an elected government...Aren't IAS officers merely tools being used by Modi govt to scuttle good work being done by Delhi government? Is it possible for IAS officers to return to work without a green signal from PMO?"

Sisodia said they were waiting at the L-G office for the past three days and Baijal has no time to issue instructions to end the officers' strike. "That the L-G has not done anything shows that the IAS officers' hartal is done with his blessings," he tweeted.

The BJP also stepped up its attack on the AAP government announcing a march to the Chief Minister's Office in Delhi Secretariat to raise the issue of water and power crisis in the capital.

However, AAP's chief spokesperson said, "(Delhi BJP chief) Manoj Tiwari and BJP is doing dharna that work is not happening at Delhi. That's what Kejriwal is saying that work is not happening because IAS officers are on strike. PMO should stop patronising the IAS Officers strike."