Facing criticism for touring other states when Delhi is reeling under Chikungunya, chief minister Arvind Keriwal tried to skip responsibility by blaming Centre for snatching power from the Delhi government. Kejriwal sought to pass the buck, saying the Delhi government was "incapable of even buying a pen" as he and his Cabinet colleagues stand "fully stripped of powers."
Kejriwal, who is in Bengaluru, said Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and Prime Minister Narendra Modi should be "questioned" over the issue as powers rested with them.
"CM n min left wid no power now, even to buy a pen. LG n PM enjoy all powers wrt Del. LG abroad. Question them for Del, (sic)" Kejriwal tweeted.
Three persons have died due to chikungunya in Delhi, but the entire Delhi Cabinet is virtually missing from action as ministers including Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain, Gopal Rai and Imran Hussain are out of station.
While the Chief Minister is scheduled to undergo a throat operation in Bengaluru today, his deputy Sisodia is in Finland to study its education system. Jain, who holds the Health portfolio, is touring poll-bound Goa, Rai is in Chhattisgarh and Hussain is on Haj pilgrimage.
Jain too tried to put the onus on the civic body of Delhi. "Two MCD Mayors are out of Delhi, ask them why? Their only work is to ensure cleanliness. There are only 40% beds under Delhi Govt. We're not denying anyone bed and have made all facilities available to deal with such cases," said Jain.
Reacting to the insensitivity of the Delhi government, the BJP has asked Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to quit if he is unable to act.
"Sir if you don't have the capacity to buy a pen, as you are suggesting, why don't you resign? If you say that you have no role as the Chief Minister of Delhi, how come the Chief Minister and other ministers' offices spent Rs one crore on snacks and Rs 526 core on ads," BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra told reporters.
He questioned the expenditure on AAP ministers' foreign trips and questioned why ministers were out of the state when people needed them the most.
"You cannot run away, and for God's sake you have to mind your language when people ask questions. Please don't get frustrated and answer them in a democratic manner rather than calling them dalal or agent," Patra said.
Former Delhi chief minister and senior Congress leader Sheila Dikshit too weighed in on the issue, saying it was the government's responsibility to preempt the disease outbreak by taking preventive steps.
"It is the government's responsibility to take preemptive steps when this season arrives, before people get sick," she told ANI adding that there was no fumigation in the city this time.


With Delhi reporting three chikungunya deaths, BJP on Tuesday slammed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for "failing" to address the city's public health challenge and demanded his immediate resignation.
Taking on the ruling AAP government in Delhi, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said while the capital was reeling under crisis on account of vector-borne diseases, the chief minister was busy shifting the blame on the Prime Minister and LT Governor over the deaths and was missing from Delhi.
The BJP leader accused Kejriwal of continuing to enjoy all benefits as chief minister while completely ignoring the people's questions on the chikungunya, dengue and malaria crisis in the capital, accusing him and his Ministers of instead campaigning in the country and travelling abroad on public money.

"It is a very sorry state of affairs that Arvind Kejriwal who is the Chief Minister of Delhi refuses to answer pertinent question regarding the health of the capital of this country.
Delhi is reeling under vector-borne diseases -- chikungunya, dengue and malaria. Kejriwal government is missing in the city.
"If you do not have the capacity to even buy a piece of pen as you are suggesting, why don't you resign. If you say that you have no role as the Chief Minister of Delhi, why the paraphernalia of a chief minister's office, ministers and crores of rupees being spent on MLAs and Chief Minister. The issue is resign," he said.
Patra said when some questions are being put in front of Kejriwal, he not only shuns these questions but he gives out a statement on Twitter saying that "don't question me, question the Prime Minister".
"You are not resigning, but you are not answering the question that though you are saying that you cannot spend 10 rupees but you have spent Rs one crore on samosas and tea.
"You are spending Rs 526 crore for your advertisements. Most of your Ministers are either on foreign destinations or destinations other than Delhi today. Whose money is it that they are spending? You have to answer these pertinent questions," he said.
The BJP leader said he has been elected by the people of Delhi for governance and "you cannot run away, you cannot shun your duty".
Kejriwal earlier tweeted, "CM and ministers left with no power now, even to buy a pen. LG and PM enjoy all powers with respect to Delhi. LG abroad. Question them for Delhi."
Two more chikungunya deaths were on Tuesday reported at a city hospital, taking to three the number of fatalities due to the vector-borne disease in Delhi where the number of cases have mounted to over 1,000 this season.