Delhi L-G, AAP threaten each other with legal action as row over hiring social media agency intensifies

Delhi L-G Secretariat said the statement of the minister of a government that has spent Rs 1900 crore of public money in advertising during 2019-2023 'is laughably atrocious'.

New Delhi: Irked by AAP minister Saurabh Bharadwaj's criticism for hiring a social media agency, the Delhi L-G Secretariat on Wednesday said it would take "legal recourse" over his "abusive, defamatory and patently false" language in the matter.

It said the statement of the minister of a government that has spent Rs 1900 crore of public money in advertising during 2019-2023 "is laughably atrocious".

The AAP hit back at Lt Governor V K Saxena, saying it will move the apex court challenging the immunity from prosecution granted to the L-G "if he continues to misuse his constitutional office for planting false and defamatory stories about the elected ministers of Delhi government".

In a statement, the party alleged that the L-G and his secretariat have started comparing themselves with the elected government or chief minister of Delhi whose budget for publicity and social media is approved by the legislative assembly.

The Secretariat, in a press statement, explained the reasons behind hiring the social media agency, saying the step was needed to take public feedback and counter fake news on important issues, and added it has taken "grave objection and exception" to the statement issued by Bharadwaj.

"To say the least, his choice of words are abusive, defamatory, misleading and patently false and the Secretariat will take legal recourse in the matter," it said.

Bharadwaj in a press conference on Tuesday targeted Lt Governor Saxena, alleging that he was planning to "waste" taxpayers' money to boost his image through social media and called it a "conspiracy" to influence voters before assembly elections in the national capital.

"L-G sir has such a desire to become famous. Instead, he wants to become famous by paying from Delhi taxpayers’ money. It is a matter of shame,” Bhardwaj had charged.

Reacting to it, the L-G secretariat said, "Such statements coming from the minister of a government that has spent Rs 1900 crores of public money in advertising during 2019-2023, which included two years of severe financial distress due to the pandemic, is laughably atrocious." This government has spent an average of Rs 36 crore per month and Rs 1.2 crore per day on advertising for the "personal glorification of its leader and its political party (AAP) even as Delhi has become a living hell" in terms of pollution, health and civic infrastructure for its people, it alleged in the statement.

The L-G Secretariat is in the process of hiring an agency to manage its social media outreach, the tender for which, amounting to Rs 1.5 crore annually, has been "transparently" posted on relevant platforms, it said.

Explaining the reason behind the hiring social media agency, the L-G secretariat said it deals with "extremely important" people-oriented subjects like housing, infrastructure development, law and order, security and policing, and projects related to the restoration of heritage, traffic, parking management and pollution mitigation.

All these require public participation and feedback, it said.

The Secretariat also serves as a forum for seamless coordination between various urban local bodies, the Delhi government and other agencies and the Delhi people at large. All of these require continuous interface and interaction with the people of Delhi.

In the prevailing times of fake news, misinformation and false propaganda, often played up on social media platforms by people with vested interests, the secretariat is also required to put out factual and correct information to counter it, added the statement.

The Aam Aadmi Party, in its reaction, said Saxena needs to understand he is not the first L-G of Delhi and none of his predecessors who occupied the post before him, hired "such expensive" social media agency for his "image" and office.

The AAP also alleged that the L-G Secretariat has been using "abusive, defamatory, misleading and patently false" words for the AAP government and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Everyone is free to take legal action against others, AAP said and claimed the L-G was able "to plead immunity from prosecution citing his constitutional office" in a case involving Medha Patkar.

"However, we will take up the matter in the top court of the country and challenge his immunity from prosecution, if he continues to misuse his constitutional office for planting false and defamatory stories about the elected ministers of the Delhi government," the party warned.