How long do you plan to continue the protest?

• The strike by IAS officers has stalled many important works concerning the people of Delhi. The IAS officers do not attend any meeting convened by ministers, they do not respond to phone calls of ministers, nor do they go on any field visits with ministers. It is extremely strange that soon after our government was formed in Delhi, the Modi government snatched all our powers concerning the transfers and postings of officers. Today the elected Delhi government cannot take any action on officers.

has been instigated by the central government to paralyse the Delhi government.

What if the LG does not respond to your demands?

• We need to understand why this officers’ strike was instigated. Despite being faced with numerous hurdles created by the Centre, the AAP government has performed wonderfully. So people are asking if the AAP government did not allow private schools to hike their fees, and made tests and medicines available for free in government hospitals, what did the BJP governments in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Chhattisgarh do in so many years? If electricity tariffs in Delhi are the lowest in the country, why PM Modi couldn’t do so in the country in the last four years? So they devised this way to paralyse our government. But I want to assure the people of Delhi that I will tirelessly keep working for their welfare and their rights till my last breath. Until they end the IAS officers’ strike, we will not step back.

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You have said that work has been affected because officers are not attending meetings. Can you share which are the key areas that have been hit?

• On Friday, environment minister Imran Hussain had convened a meeting on tackling air pollution. The environment secretary and member secretary did not turn up. Officers have not attended meetings on desilting of drains, tackling dengue and chikungunya, whitewashing of schools, setting up mohalla clinics, work on Signature Bridge, etc.

You and three other ministers are camping at LG’s office. How is that impacting governance?

• I have already said that the officers’ strike has been instigated to paralyse our government.

Your appeals to PM Narendra Modi have not been answered till now. Do you plan to end the stir and attend the NITI Aayog meeting on Sunday to seek his intervention?

• I have written to the PM and appealed to him that before the meeting, the strike should be called off. It will end within a minute if the PM wants. I have attended many meetings in which the PM is present, but he neither talks to me nor looks at me. In these meetings, the representative of Delhi is not given an opportunity to speak.

After a long time, you have stepped up the attack on PM.

• I am appealing to him with folded hands that he should intervene and put an end to the strike due to which Delhi has got a bad name across the world. The world is seeing that the officers are not working, and an elected chief minister and his ministers are sitting for six days to get a strike ended. Delhi government’s work is being lauded the world over and in September former UN secretary general Kofi Annan along with several other international dignitaries will visit India to see the mohalla clinics.

You say the AAP government has performed better than BJP governments in other states. How did that happen if IAS officers were not supporting you?

• Despite all obstacles in our way, it is our will power and honest politics that has seen our government deliver.

On February 19, the chief secretary came for a midnight meeting. What happened all of a sudden that all bureaucrats started boycotting the routine meetings with you and other ministers?

• There was no attack. It is a ploy to destabilise our government. Since the matter is now in court, I will appeal to all to wait for the verdict.

Do you think it is reasonable for a CM to go to meet the LG with an appointment and refuse to leave his office unless his demands are met?

• We tried our best to resolve this issue through dialogue. For the last three months, we did everything possible to reason with the LG. I have myself met him four times, Manish Sisodia met him four times, Gopal Rai and Satyendar Jain met him thrice. We also wrote to him. Every time, he said just one thing: that he wanted a week’s time to resolve everything. Then we realised that the Centre wants us to remain a lameduck government. So we decided to fight.

BJP leaders are on dharna outside your office demanding your return to work.

• It is beyond any reasonable understanding why they are on dharna. On the one hand they are saying that the officers are not on strike and doing good work; on the other, they are saying there is problem with electricity and water.

A severe water crisis has hit the city when you as water minister are on dharna. What have you done?

• I agree there is a water problem in some parts of Delhi. But in the last three months, whenever I called up the DJB CEO, he did not answer. Barring the formal board meetings, he refuses to attend any meeting. How do I work?