Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on Tuesday said owing to the alleged assault on chief secretary at the residence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by AAP MLAs, government employees in Delhi felt “physically insecure”. Baijal urged the Chief Minister to reach out to the employees. He claimed that the incident had a demoralising effect on entire bureaucracy.

Baijal, in a letter to Kejriwal ~which was in response to the letter written by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on 26 February regarding the prevailing situation in Delhi government~emphasised that the unfortunate incident of alleged misbehaviour and physical assault on the chief secretary, who is the head of the bureaucracy, at the residence of the Chief Minister by the elected MLAs was “unprecedented” and had sent “shock waves” through all sections of government employees not only in Delhi but in the entire country.

The L-G noted that in his long career in the government, he did not recall there being such a great rift between the elected government and bureaucracy though Delhi had seen governments of different parties.

According to a statement issued by Raj Niwas, the L-G after the meeting on 24 February with Kejriwal and his cabinet, met representatives of officers’ service associations and received an impression that government employees in Delhi “feel physically insecure”, sadly in the very presence of those, who have been elected to uphold democracy and rule of law.

“In the past also, many officers had complained of ill treatment by the elected government.” “There was a need to introspect how this deplorable state of affairs had developed,” the letter stated.

The L-G also underscored that it was of utmost importance that the elected government and officials worked together in public interest in an amicable atmosphere.

He mentioned that as far as he knew, there had not been any strike by any section of bureaucracy. “All the government offices are open and functioning. And as he perceived, all that government employees have been asking is that they be provided with a secure environment to work,” the statement read.

Assuring the Chief Minister that from his side he would be making all efforts to restore a sense of security amongst government employees, the L-G observed that under the circumstances he would urge the CM to reach out directly to the employees as greater responsibility lay on him because the alleged assault on the chief secretary was reported from his residence and in his presence.