Delhi government, LG spar over inauguration of IP University's east campus
A day after Atishi announced that Kejriwal would inaugurate the campus, the LG secretariat said the government was aware that LG was scheduled to inaugurate it
The ongoing power tussle between the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government and lieutenant governor VK Saxena saw a fresh flash point on Wednesday after the LG secretariat objected to an announcement that chief minister Arvind Kejriwal would inaugurate a new campus of the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU).
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The LG secretariat’s objections came a day after education minister Atishi had announced that Kejriwal would on June 8 inaugurate the east Delhi campus of the university, which has been built at a cost of ₹388 crore, and can accommodate 2,400 students.
In response, Atishi accused the LG of trying to “steal credit” from the AAP government.
In an official statement, the LG secretariat said that the Delhi government was aware that Saxena was scheduled to inaugurate the GGSIPU campus, and that at the programme, Kejriwal and Atishi were to be the guest of honour and distinguished guest, respectively.
“They were also aware that they were supposed to be present on the function as guest of honour and distinguished guest, as desired by Lieutenant Governor and had also consented to it. Chief Minister had asked for the date to be shifted from May 23 to accommodate his schedule and the date was re-scheduled to June 8,” the statement said.
The LG office claimed that the GGSIPU registrar and vice-chancellor wrote to the LG secretariat on March 17, requesting Saxena to inaugurate the new campus. “In the same note, it was conveyed that the LG had desired that the CM and the education minister may also be invited for the inauguration,” an LG secretariat official said, declining to be named.
The official added, “Even on the day when the education minister made this claim, the vice chancellor of the university had announced on stage at the convocation ceremony of university, where Atishi was present as the guest of honour, that the east campus of the university was scheduled to be inaugurated by the LG on Thursday.”
Responding to the LG secretariat statement, Atishi said, “In his hunger to grab credit for the elected government’s work, the LG should not forget that education, higher education and technical education are all transferred subjects. The Kejriwal government has been working on all these three sectors diligently over the last eight years. Today if you go on the streets of Delhi and ask any citizen about who brought the education revolution of Delhi, they will say Arvind Kejriwal, they will not say the BJP-appointed LG worked on education. It is highly unbecoming of an LG to try to steal credit for the elected government’s work, he should not indulge in such petty politics.”
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She also claimed that the east Delhi campus of the university was the “brainchild and dream project” of her predecessor Manish Sisodia.
