Kolkata: In a bid to shore up support to give more teeth to his fight against the Centre's ordinance on control of services in Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal met his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata on Tuesday afternoon.
Kejriwal-led AAP government is at loggerheads with the Centre over the setting up of the National Capital Civil Service Authority, where the chief minister will be the sole representative of the elected government, which will handle the transfer of IAS and DANICS cadre officers.
The party has also announced that it will hold a 'maha rally' at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on June 11 against the "black ordinance". Punjab CM and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann is accompanying Arvind Kejriwal. They are expected to reach Mumbai by the evening and are likely to meet Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray and NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday.
The Modi government brought an Ordinance on Friday giving its appointee, the Lieutenant Governor (L-G), the final say on the posting and transfer of bureaucrats serving the AAP government in Delhi. The Centre took the Ordinance route to negate the May 11 Supreme Court order that had settled a festering tussle and allowed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his ministers to finally control officials deputed to the Delhi government.
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The National Capital Civil Service Authority, where the chief minister will be the sole representative of the elected government, will handle the transfer of IAS and DANICS cadre officers and also matters of disciplinary proceedings against them.
Other AAP leaders, including Raghav Chadha and Atishi, also reached Kolkata to meet the Bengal CM. "When this comes to the Rajya Sabha, it has to be ensured that it is not passed. I will meet the leaders of all political parties and ask for support," Kejriwal wrote on Twitter.
The AAP has already sought the support of all non-BJP parties on the issue, saying this is a "time for 'agni pariksha' (trial by fire)" for opposition parties, and that they should come together if they want to save the country's democracy and Constitution. Kejriwal had earlier met Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the ordinance issue and the latter extended full support to AAP in its tussle with the Centre on the matter. The central ordinance sets up a National Capital Civil Service Authority where the chief minister will be the sole representative of the elected government. The authority will handle the transfer of IAS and DANICS cadre officers and also matters of disciplinary proceedings against them. The central ordinance has to be ratified by Parliament within six months. For this, the Centre will have to bring a bill for its passage in both Houses of Parliament.
