A blow has come to the Delhi Dialogue and Development Commission with the issuance of an order for its temporary dissolution by Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena, who claimed that the state-funded body had deviated from its set role to "selected individuals and unelected acquaintances" for gaining personal benefits.
He said the Lieutenant Governor Saxena severely criticized the DDCD for having totally failed in its purpose as a policy think-tank, originally designed akin to the Planning Commission/ NITI Aayog for governance input. It had turned into a haven for those having certain political affiliations with financial gains and undue patronage.
"The Commission was created to serve as a policy think-tank manned by domain experts, on the lines of the Planning Commission/NITI Aayog, to provide inputs of governance. It was not meant to accommodate favoured individuals, unelected friends, or politically partisan people," L-G Saxena said.
He also alleged that the AAP government was indulging in arbitrary appointments in the DDCD and was spending salaries illegally.
The AAP hit back at the dissolution, terming it political vendetta. Minister Sourabh Bharadwaj accused Saxena of playing to political interests and questioned his appointment process itself.
“It is a well-known fact that all the commissions, committees, and boards of the Central government or in the BJP-ruled states have political appointees without any test or interview. It’s an old practice,” said the Minister of Health and Urban Development in Delhi government.
The dissolution of the DDCD saw predictable protests from AAP, underlining the continuing tensions between the state government and the Lieutenant Governor.
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