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We need two Delhis: One for Arvind Kejriwal to run and another which he can't
The centre has needlessly painted itself into a corner while dealing with the recalcitrance ofArvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s full-time Don Quixote and part-time Chief Minister.
No matter what the constitutional provisions say about the relative powers of the centre or those of the elected state government, the optics favour Kejriwal and not the home ministry or his proxy, Lt Governor Najeeb Jung. There is no way the latter can win their case in the court of public opinion where an elected CM can’t appoint his own key officials, including the Chief Secretary. The issue is not the law as its stands, but how it will be perceived by the man on the street, who voted Kejriwal in with a massive mandate just over three months ago. Home Minister Rajnath Singh's belated effort to issue a clarificatory order on the powers of the Lt Governor are no use here.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. PTI
The right thing to do is to retreat and shift the battleground. It is not too late for Jung to – even at this late hour – give Kejriwal his right to appoint his chief secretary or key officials. What he cannot do is give Delhi (the state) jurisdiction over Delhi (the national capital and power centre).
Kejriwal thinks he is batting on a good wicket and this is why he has called a special two-day session of the Delhi assembly tomorrow (26 May). The idea is to ram through two resolutions: one will demand full statehood for Delhi, and the other could either indirectly censure the Lt Governor for his actions, or even try to annul them. This will land us all in a godawful constitutional crisis – which is exactly what Kejriwal wants. It is unlikely that any court will say he can’t appoint his own Chief Secretary.
Before we see what needs to be done, let us be clear what Kejriwal wants – and why.
First, he needs a public distraction. The last thing Kejriwal wants is Delhi discussing power failures or water issues or poor bus services. Najeeb Jung has played into his hands by giving him that distraction.
Second, Kejriwal knows that he cannot deliver results in the short term. Long-term governance or corruption issues cannot be addressed by screaming and shouting. Kejriwal has so far not displayed any stamina for thankless, hard work. He has left that job to Manish Sisodia. He has created a buffer between him and accountability, and also ensured an alibi for himself if things go wrong. By raising issues about central interference and lack of administrative powers Kejriwal is essentially saying he is not responsible for governance outcomes in Delhi.
Third, Kejriwal also has higher ambitions beyond being CM of Delhi – which is actually just a glorified municipal post (Delhi is a city, and its executive head should rightly be called a mayor, not CM). But thanks to Delhi’s position as national capital, Kejriwal gets status and media attention that is out of proportion to his actual job description. He is using Delhi’s unique position to carve out a larger national role for himself. He is trying to stay in the national limelight by repeatedly claiming victimhood at the hands of the centre.
Fourth, Kejriwal has a new problem. The media has re-discovered Rahul Gandhi. Every gain for a Gandhi dynast is a loss for the Aam Aadmi Party, which operates in the same left-of-centre political space as the Congress in terms of its ideological positioning.
If we know what Kejriwal is after, it should be relatively easy for the home ministry to understand why it has goofed in handling Kejriwal. It has needlessly made him a martyr in the power game.
Clearly, a formal retreat on the chief secretary’s appointment is in order. Instead, the centre needs to shift focus to the future status of Delhi – where the BJP has also promised full statehood.
The truth is full statehood is not possible in the current geography of Delhi, which houses not only Delhi’s population, but the offices of the central government and its ministries, key state-level representative offices, and the diplomatic enclaves, among other things.
Delhi can get full statehood only by excluding these areas from the local government’s jurisdiction. Kejriwal cannot be given the ability to mess around with the centre’s jurisdiction – something he is prone to do all the time.
Right now, Delhi is bifurcated horizontally by function: the centre retains full jurisdiction over police, law and order and land; Kejriwal can theoretically run the rest.
The way out would be to bifurcate Delhi vertically – that is, geographically – to create two states, one run by Kejriwal, which contains all areas that are not of interest to the central government, and another which remains a Union territory run by the home ministry. In the portions to be run by Kejriwal he can get all powers now with the centre, including land and police; in the portions excluded, he should get no say whatsoever. Also, any central office or diplomatic enclave anywhere in the National Capital Region should automatically be seen as the centre’s jurisdiction. Just as any diplomatic mission is the territory of the country that runs it, any central office in Delhi should be out of bounds for Kejriwal.
Broadly speaking, the entire area of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation would be the centre’s bailiwick. And so too would any area that houses diplomatic missions or central offices.
Put another way, this would be a Vatican solution. A largish enclave (that would include mini enclaves outside the NDMC) run by the centre; and the rump Delhi run by Kejriwal.
The right way forward for the centre is to offer a comprehensive discussion on what the new bifurcated Delhi should be. A committee should be set up to discuss what power can be devolved and what can’t.
Trying to deny Kejriwal his Chief Secretary is a losing proposition for the centre. It is giving Kejriwal a propaganda coup for no gain whatsoever. It is time to enmesh him in talks about devolution and deny him easy martyrdom.
We need two Delhis: One for Arvind Kejriwal to run and another which he can't - Firstpost
The centre has needlessly painted itself into a corner while dealing with the recalcitrance ofArvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s full-time Don Quixote and part-time Chief Minister.
No matter what the constitutional provisions say about the relative powers of the centre or those of the elected state government, the optics favour Kejriwal and not the home ministry or his proxy, Lt Governor Najeeb Jung. There is no way the latter can win their case in the court of public opinion where an elected CM can’t appoint his own key officials, including the Chief Secretary. The issue is not the law as its stands, but how it will be perceived by the man on the street, who voted Kejriwal in with a massive mandate just over three months ago. Home Minister Rajnath Singh's belated effort to issue a clarificatory order on the powers of the Lt Governor are no use here.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. PTI
The right thing to do is to retreat and shift the battleground. It is not too late for Jung to – even at this late hour – give Kejriwal his right to appoint his chief secretary or key officials. What he cannot do is give Delhi (the state) jurisdiction over Delhi (the national capital and power centre).
Kejriwal thinks he is batting on a good wicket and this is why he has called a special two-day session of the Delhi assembly tomorrow (26 May). The idea is to ram through two resolutions: one will demand full statehood for Delhi, and the other could either indirectly censure the Lt Governor for his actions, or even try to annul them. This will land us all in a godawful constitutional crisis – which is exactly what Kejriwal wants. It is unlikely that any court will say he can’t appoint his own Chief Secretary.
Before we see what needs to be done, let us be clear what Kejriwal wants – and why.
First, he needs a public distraction. The last thing Kejriwal wants is Delhi discussing power failures or water issues or poor bus services. Najeeb Jung has played into his hands by giving him that distraction.
Second, Kejriwal knows that he cannot deliver results in the short term. Long-term governance or corruption issues cannot be addressed by screaming and shouting. Kejriwal has so far not displayed any stamina for thankless, hard work. He has left that job to Manish Sisodia. He has created a buffer between him and accountability, and also ensured an alibi for himself if things go wrong. By raising issues about central interference and lack of administrative powers Kejriwal is essentially saying he is not responsible for governance outcomes in Delhi.
Third, Kejriwal also has higher ambitions beyond being CM of Delhi – which is actually just a glorified municipal post (Delhi is a city, and its executive head should rightly be called a mayor, not CM). But thanks to Delhi’s position as national capital, Kejriwal gets status and media attention that is out of proportion to his actual job description. He is using Delhi’s unique position to carve out a larger national role for himself. He is trying to stay in the national limelight by repeatedly claiming victimhood at the hands of the centre.
Fourth, Kejriwal has a new problem. The media has re-discovered Rahul Gandhi. Every gain for a Gandhi dynast is a loss for the Aam Aadmi Party, which operates in the same left-of-centre political space as the Congress in terms of its ideological positioning.
If we know what Kejriwal is after, it should be relatively easy for the home ministry to understand why it has goofed in handling Kejriwal. It has needlessly made him a martyr in the power game.
Clearly, a formal retreat on the chief secretary’s appointment is in order. Instead, the centre needs to shift focus to the future status of Delhi – where the BJP has also promised full statehood.
The truth is full statehood is not possible in the current geography of Delhi, which houses not only Delhi’s population, but the offices of the central government and its ministries, key state-level representative offices, and the diplomatic enclaves, among other things.
Delhi can get full statehood only by excluding these areas from the local government’s jurisdiction. Kejriwal cannot be given the ability to mess around with the centre’s jurisdiction – something he is prone to do all the time.
Right now, Delhi is bifurcated horizontally by function: the centre retains full jurisdiction over police, law and order and land; Kejriwal can theoretically run the rest.
The way out would be to bifurcate Delhi vertically – that is, geographically – to create two states, one run by Kejriwal, which contains all areas that are not of interest to the central government, and another which remains a Union territory run by the home ministry. In the portions to be run by Kejriwal he can get all powers now with the centre, including land and police; in the portions excluded, he should get no say whatsoever. Also, any central office or diplomatic enclave anywhere in the National Capital Region should automatically be seen as the centre’s jurisdiction. Just as any diplomatic mission is the territory of the country that runs it, any central office in Delhi should be out of bounds for Kejriwal.
Broadly speaking, the entire area of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation would be the centre’s bailiwick. And so too would any area that houses diplomatic missions or central offices.
Put another way, this would be a Vatican solution. A largish enclave (that would include mini enclaves outside the NDMC) run by the centre; and the rump Delhi run by Kejriwal.
The right way forward for the centre is to offer a comprehensive discussion on what the new bifurcated Delhi should be. A committee should be set up to discuss what power can be devolved and what can’t.
Trying to deny Kejriwal his Chief Secretary is a losing proposition for the centre. It is giving Kejriwal a propaganda coup for no gain whatsoever. It is time to enmesh him in talks about devolution and deny him easy martyrdom.
We need two Delhis: One for Arvind Kejriwal to run and another which he can't - Firstpost
