The Delhi government on Thursday denied published reports that the morale of its officers had been hit by a public row between the chief minister and the Lt. Governor."Every government official is working with the chief minister and different ministers with full energy," Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said in a tweet."The morale has gone down for those who misuse their positions, not for the hardworking officers," he added.According to Sisodia, retired IAS officers who in earlier governments thrived by transferring and posting bureaucrats in select posts were "now talking about boosting IAS officers' morale".
Although he is the deputy chief minister, Sisodia, a long-time confidant of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, holds several key portfolios and is seen as the most senior person in the government after Kejriwal.The AAP government, which took office in February, has been locked in an ugly spat with Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung over the posting and transfer of senior officers, particularly those from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).This has fuelled speculation that the morale of IAS officers in the Delhi government has been hit and that some are seeking postings elsewhere.