Second innings for Swati Maliwal as DCW chief
Swati Maliwal took charge as the Chairperson of Delhi Commission for Women (DCW), along with three other members. Maliwal's appointment came after the directive of Lieutenant Jung was heeded to and he ratified her appointment orders. Maliwal paid homage to the late president Kalam and said he was an inspiration to her life; she also said that her aim was to strengthen the DCW.
Swati Maliwal, an advisor to Kejriwal on public grievances, was appointed as the chairperson of Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) on 17 July 2015.
On 22 July, the appointment of Swati Maliwal as DCW chief was declared null and void by Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung. Jung declared the appointment of Maliwal as "ultra vires" of the rules. The Lt. Governor had sought explanation as to why his approval was not taken in this particular appointment. He further questioned the procedures by which Maliwal's appointment was made.
The Congress party demanded clarification as to why CM Kejriwal had not sent the file for approval to Jung, as had been done when Sheila Dixit was the CM. Maken slammed Kejriwal for being choosy about which file to send to the Lieutenant Governor and which not. Moreover, Kejriwal came under attack by BJP for appointing Maliwal, who was AAP leader Naveen Jaihind's wife.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal addressed a bitter letter to Lt Governor Najeeb Jung after sending the file regarding the appointment of Swati Maliwal as DCW chief. Kejriwal wrote against the LG's assertion that he was the 'government' in Delhi and for forcefully seeking the files from DCW office. He further highlighted that the AAP government was the real government of Delhi.
Lt. Governor Jung refused to sign Maliwal's appointment file sent by the AAP government for his approval on the grounds that it had not been 'processed properly'. Jung said that in the appointment letter Sandeep Kumar-Child Welfare Minister, had stated himself as the "appropriate authority" to take DCW related decisions, which needed to be rectified. He said therefore fresh notification needs to be submitted.
