They are trying to create a situation to impose President’s rule in Delhi, claims CM.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government on Wednesday relented to the demands of striking civic body officials with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announcing the disbursal of close to Rs. 700 crore, including a loan of Rs. 551 crore, to the North and East municipal corporations.

This even as protests by Municipal Corporation employees across categories continued to spill onto the Capital’s streets for the eighth consecutive day and Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung called on Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh at his residence to discuss the situation.

Striking municipal staff and employees’ unions, however, were far from being placated and termed the announcement yet another instance of “step-motherly treatment” by the Delhi government, referring to the nature and the conditions governing the disbursal of the financial package.

In reaction, the AAP government claimed the strike was “manufactured” for the attainment of political ends. The strike will continue, the unions said.

Speaking via video conferencing from Bengaluru, where he is currently undergoing naturopathy treatment, the Chief Minister said the Delhi government was able to arrange the amount with “great difficulty” as it faced a shortfall of an estimated Rs. 3,000 crore in its projected collections from Value Added Tax (VAT).

Mr. Kejriwal, however, said his government’s intent to disburse the said amount which, he claimed, was arranged by diverting capital funds earmarked for the Education department and would, among other initiatives, further delay infrastructural expansion intended across the Capital’s government-run schools.

The declaration was followed by accusations of “massive scams” across the three MCDs, attempts to impose President’s rule in the garb of an manufactured financial crisis and references to what he termed were Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “dictatorial tendencies.”