Governance has virtually come to a halt in the capital after Delhi chief secretary Anshu Prakash, in an unprecedented turn of events, alleged he was abused and assaulted at the chief minister’s residence at midnight by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislators. 

Prakash met Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on Tuesday morning, triggering a chain of events that has hurled the national capital towards a virtual governance paralysis. Surprisingly, otherwise extremely vocal, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has chosen not to speak on the controversy until now.

Based on the complaint, the Delhi Police have lodged an FIR against AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan and others under sections relating to criminal conspiracy, criminal intimidation, and assault on a public servant.

In the complaint, the chief secretary has alleged that during a meeting, Khan and one other MLA “started hitting and assaulting me and hit several blows with fists on my head and temple”.   

AAP leader and Delhi government adviser Atishi Marlena, meanwhile, termed the chief secretary’s allegation as “false” and “baseless”. The party alleged that the chief secretary was acting at the behest of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).  

Soon after, two AAP legislators – present at Monday night’s meeting – alleged that Prakash had hurled casteist slurs at them. And then a ruckus was reported from the Delhi Secretariat. The AAP claimed that Delhi minister Imran Hussain and Delhi Dialogue Commission (DDC) chairman Ashish Khetan were manhandled inside the secretariat – a high-security zone.

The meeting that triggered all this chaos took place after 10 pm at Kejriwal’s residence on February 19. While the bureaucrats have claimed the meeting was called over the obstacles faced by the Delhi government’s publicity drive, the AAP has maintained it was called over a serious issue related to ration cards. 

“We have been facing the anger of voters in our constituencies. Around 2.5 lakh people have not been receiving their rations for issues related to linkages,” AAP MLA Prakash Jarwal told Newslaundry. “The MLAs have time and again requested the chief secretary to look into the crisis. But to no avail. When the matter reached Kejriwal, he called the meeting.”

Around eight to ten MLAs, according to Jarwal, had reached the CM’s residence for the meeting with the chief secretary two hours before the chief secretary arrived. He was then apparently questioned by Ambedkar Nagar MLA Ajay Dutt and Jarwal over the alleged ration distribution crisis. 

“To this, Prakash responded by saying, ‘I am not answerable to you, I report to the LG…We have not taken responsibility for you Dalits,’” Jarwal said. “The chief secretary said: ‘tumhari aukat nahi hai vidhayak banne ki’ (you don’t have what it takes to be an MLA)… How can a senior officer of the government speak to MLAs like this?” Jarwal asked. 

Prima-facie, the caste slur allegations – Jarwal and Dutt have registered their complaints with the Delhi Police – come across as the AAP’s strategy to counter the chief secretary’s claims. “In fact, the party didn’t raise this issue in the beginning as it would look like a plant,” a highly placed source in the party told this correspondent. “Also, we want to resolve the crisis.”

Interestingly, in the CCTV footage which has surfaced after the incident, chief secretary Prakash can be seen walking out of Kejriwal’s residence around 11.30 in the night.

Sources confirmed that AAP MLAs and Prakash did exchange heated arguments in the night. But there are serious questions surrounding the meeting itself. Why was Delhi’s most senior government officer called for the meeting at midnight? Is the AAP government trying to categorise the discrepancies in the ration distribution system as an emergency-like situation?

Also, why were former MLAs – disqualified by the President recently – attending the meeting? Jarwal confirmed that at least four disqualified legislators – Madan Lal, Rajesh Gupta, Rajesh Rishi, and Praveen Kumar – were present at the meeting.

Meanwhile, AAP leader Atishi Marlena has termed the allegations made by the chief secretary as “baseless”.  While defending the timing of the meeting, Marlena said: “Don’t you think it is an emergency-like situation when 2.5 lakh families have not got their rations… There was a lot of pressure from the MLAs and a large delegation of people had come to meet the chief minister late in the evening.”  

“There is absolutely no physical assault,” Marlena said. “Yes, a heated argument took place between the legislators and the chief secretary. It happened because the chief secretary said he is not answerable to elected representatives. They got agitated.”

Asked if she had seen the CCTV footage, Marlena responded, “No, I haven’t seen the CCTV footage.”

She maintained that the party will release CCTV footage of the meeting “once the chief secretary puts forward something to substantiate his claims”.

Meanwhile, three bureaucrat associations – the IAS association, DANICS and the Delhi Administrative Subordinate Services (DSS) association – met LG Baijal over the  allegations made by the chief secretary. 

“Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia and 10-12 legislators were present at the meeting, called at midnight to discuss issues related to Delhi government advertisements (TVC). These ads were blocked as they were in violation of Supreme Court guidelines,” Manisha Saxena, secretary, IAS association, said after meeting the LG. “The legislators misbehaved with the chief secretary and he was heckled. For the past few years, officers in Delhi have been insulted, humiliated – even publicly. Despite this, the officers have been discharging their duties impartially and fearlessly.” 

Saxena said IAS officers will wear black bands while discharging their duties until action is taken against those involved in the assault. “The associations will raise the issue with the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind and Union home minister Rajnath Singh,” she said.

The DSS has decided to go a step ahead. The association has announced its members will go on strike with immediate effect. DSS president, DN Singh, told the media, “We are going on a strike with immediate effect, we are with our chief secretary, and until they (those at fault) are not arrested we will not return to work… We have urged the LG to take legal action against those responsible. This is like a constitutional crisis, never seen such a thing happen in the past many years.”

Prakash made specific allegations against two AAP MLAs – infamous Okhla legislator Amanatullah Khan being one of them. However, what remains unclear is, why did Kejriwal call the legislators, including those disqualified, to the meeting in the first place?

The Kejriwal-led Delhi government has locked horns with its own officers on several occasions in the past. In May 2015, for instance, AAP workers “insulted” senior Delhi government officer Anindo Majumdar by locking his office after the bureaucrat cleared the appointment of Shakuntala Gamlin as acting chief secretary – despite the government’s strong opposition to the proposal.

Also, the allegations of the attack come a day after chief secretary Prakash issued a communication informing the officers to be ready to face action if they fail to authenticate that all orders are executed in the name of the LG. This message implies that officers will deter from carrying out decisions solely on the orders of the AAP government.

“We are not foolish to attack him like this,” Jarwal said, responding to the chief secretary’s claims. Marlena also alleged that the officers are being used to stall work in Delhi. “The question is whether they are being used [by the central government] as a front to disrupt governance in Delhi,” Marlena said.

Opposition leaders, including Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken, have come down heavily on Kejriwal. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said that while it is for the central government to decide whether to implement President’s rule in Delhi, his party demands Kejriwal’s resignation over the issue. Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari dubbed the incident as “urban naxalism”.