L-G’s 15-page letter blames AAP for smog crisis
New Delhi: Delhi Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena on Tuesday wrote a strongly worded letter to former Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, holding the previous AAP government responsible for the current severe air pollution crisis in the national capital.
In the 15-page letter, Saxena alleged that “the inaction of the AAP government in the last 11 years is primarily responsible for such severe conditions of air pollution in the national capital.” He accused the former government of failing to take concrete measures to address major pollution sources, particularly dust generation.
Saxena further alleged that Kejriwal was attempting to shift blame onto the present dispensation for political gain. “You are trying to unnecessarily bog down the (BJP) government of 10 months, which is trying to do everything possible to undo your wrongs, for petty political gains,” he wrote.
Referring to AAP’s defeat in the Delhi Assembly elections, the Lieutenant Governor said the party had failed to introspect. Despite a “crushing defeat,” he said, the AAP continues to “indulge in petty politics and spreading lies over the critical issues concerning the people of Delhi.”
Saxena alleged that during its tenure, the AAP government resorted to blame-shifting rather than governance. “All that your government did was blame the then Punjab Government and the Government of India. It never cared to take any step to curb dust
generation that is majorly responsible for air pollution in Delhi,” he stated. The Lieutenant Governor also accused the AAP government of weakening institutional decision-making. He claimed that weekly Cabinet meetings were discontinued and that “key policy and administrative decisions were taken through circulation, leaving no room for any discussion or deliberation,” reflecting what he termed as insensitivity towards Delhi’s residents.
Meanwhile, the AAP accused Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena of indulging in “political distraction” and “theatrics” over the issue of air pollution, while hitting out at the BJP for using “letter politics” to divert attention from what it called the city
government’s failure to deal with the worsening environmental crisis. The party alleged that while Delhi continues to face severe pollution, the L-G chose to write to a former chief minister instead of questioning the present government, calling it a case of “letter nautanki” aimed at staying relevant in the media.
AAP’s national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda said the L-G appears disconnected from the gravity of Delhi’s pollution situation and has failed to exercise his constitutional responsibility. He said the BJP’s “four-engine government” has failed to control pollution and the saffron party is now resorting to diversionary tactics.
