NEW DELHI, May 18:
Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has resigned citing “personal reasons” and submitted the resignation to President Ram Nath Kovind, a senior official said today.
Baijal, a 1969-batch IAS officer, was appointed as the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Delhi in December 2016 after the sudden resignation of Najeeb Jung.
His over five-year tenure was marked by frequent run-ins with the AAP dispensation over administrative jurisdiction and governance-related issues, including one in which Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Ministers staged a dharna at the LG office in 2018.
“He (Baijal) has submitted his resignation to the president,” the official said.
Baijal’s resignation comes at a time when the terms of the three civic bodies are ending and the Centre has issued notification for the unification of the three civic bodies which will be followed by the elections.
In Delhi, three subjects — land, services and law and order, directly come under the purview of the Lieutenant Governor. The matter regarding control over the services department is still in the Supreme Court.
The major face-off between the LG and the AAP Government took place in June 2018 when Kejriwal along with his ministers –Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain and Gopal Rai– held a dharna in the LG office, alleging that IAS officers posted with the State Government were not cooperating with elected representatives and non-approval of the doorstep delivery of ration Scheme by Baijal.
The tense relations between the LG and the AAP dispensation became less frequent after the Supreme Court ruling in July 2018 that the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi is bound by the “aid and advice” of the Delhi Government. (PTI)
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