Kejriwal, Sisodia meet Jung; Delhi CM says L-G resigned due to personal reasons

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and deputy CM Manish Sisodia separately met lieutenant govenor Najeeb Jung at his residence on Friday, a day after Jung announced his resignation.

Often on the opposite ends of the argument, Kejriwal and Jung met for an hour over breakfast. Later, Kejriwal told reporters that the L-G had quit due to “personal reasons”.

Kejriwal said on Thursday that Jung’s resignation “is a surprise to me. My best wishes in all his future endeavours”.

The 65-year-old Jung was locked in several public spats with the city government after the Aam Aadmi Party returned to power with a crushing majority last year. Jung and Kejriwal had showdowns over control of police, bureaucracy and clearance of files.

Government sources said the CM, who was in Ranchi on Thursday, had wished to meet L-G Jung for breakfast. The chief minister reportedly spoke to Jung on the phone as the news broke.

Read | Najeeb Jung’s sudden exit as lieutenant governor keeps Delhi guessing

Sisodia, who met Jung after Kejriwal, said the outgoing L-G had pondered over his decision for quite a while before calling it quits. “He (Jung) is not upset,” the AAP leader added.

“He (Jung) said that he was thinking of quitting the post for the last one year,” he said, adding his meeting with Jung was a “nice” one.

Many believe Jung’s sudden move was a surprise to the Centre as well. A day before his announcement, Jung had met the Union home secretary and informed him about a seven-day leave to visit Goa.

In his official announcement, Jung thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “his help and cooperation” and Kejriwal for “his association”. He also thanked the people of Delhi for “all their support and affection”. He didn’t cite any reason for his decision.

Kejriwal has often alleged that Jung was acting as an agent for the BJP-led Centre. Jung said the state government was disregarding established protocol.

However, a Delhi high court order this August upheld the lieutenant governor as the administrative head of the national capital territory.

The government has yet to accept Jung’s resignation or appoint his successor. Among those believed to be strong contenders are former Union secretaries GK Pillai and Anil Baijal. Former Delhi Police chief BS Bassi, who was the police commissioner for about three years, is also in the fray, sources said.

Read | Najeeb Jung vs Kejriwal govt: 5 issues over which they fought over

Also read | Administrator, actor, academician: Delhi’s L-G Jung is a man of several talents

(with agency inputs)