JOIN USDelhi's new L-G to work as city's 'local guardian'
As Vinai Kumar Saxena took oath as Delhi’s 22nd Lieutenant Governor on Thursday, he said that he will be “visible more on roads than at Rajbhavan”, and said that he will work as the “local guardian and not LG”.
Saxena took over the post from Anil Baijal, who resigned citing "personal reasons". The post had seen a contentious relationship with the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government in the past.
“You will see me less in the office, more on the road working with locals and the public. It's my dream to make Delhi a city of flowers and joy,” Saxena said as he took over. “I want to tell people that I will work as their local guardian. Delhi has some serious problems like air pollution. We will need to work together to address them,” he added.
In reply, Kejriwal said, “We will work together and extend our full support to LG Vinai Kumar Saxena for the development and welfare of the public.”
At the swearing-in ceremony, too, a fair amount of drama erupted. Former Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan was seen leaving the ceremony in a huff expressing unhappiness over seating arrangement for the dignitaries. In a video of the incident which was shared on social media platforms, a man was seen asking Dr Vardhan what had happened, to which he was heard replying, “They didn't reserve any seats for Parliament members.”
Right from the time of Najeeb Jung, Delhi CM Kejriwal has had a history of past tussles with the LG. There was also a point when Kejriwal held a dharna outside the LG’s house.
Saxena was formerly chairman of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission, an organisation under the MSME Ministry. He had an NGO in Gujarat National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL), which opposed the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) and their work to stop the construction of the Sardar Sarovar Project in Gujarat. He had also served as the General Manager of the Dholera port project in Gujarat in the past.