Warm paranthas from Najeeb Jung to Arvind Kejriwal helped break ice

NEW DELHI: There was, of course, Lt Governor Najeeb Jung’s offer to pack off two policemen on leave that gave AAP the opportunity to call off its protest, but what’s not known that a deft soft touch by Jung – sending a few warm paranthas to a hungry Arvind Kejriwal – that helped break the ice and alter the mood from jaw-jaw to talks.

The paranthas were brought by senior AAP leader Yogendra Yadav who had met the L-G over lunch to discuss how the situation could be defused. The holiday notice to two cops was the substantive part of the offer, and the paranthas gave the human touch. With the paranthas came his message: Ask Arvind not to stay hungry, and secondly, accept our olive branch and call off the dharna.

In his letter, the L-G said the two SHOs were being sent on leave pending investigations . He also told AAP that they should back their demand for bringing Delhi Police under the state government with a legal instrument like an assembly resolution. This gave Kejriwal the opening to declare a “partial victory” and call off his stir.

Back channel talks began on Tuesday after L-G’s office and AAP leaders began talking on a possible resolution to the bitter public spat. On Monday, the initial AAP plan was for Kejriwal and the six cabinet colleagues to hold a sit-in outside the Union home ministry in North Block and return by evening having lodged their protest.

Last week’s meeting with home minister Sushilkumar Shinde and police commissioner B S Bassi where Kejriwal scaled down his demand from suspension of the two SHOs to their transfer had not left them with much hope. AAP sources told TOI, “The CM and six ministers were the only ones who were going to protest but they were met with unprecedented security presence and stopped at Rail Bhavan. That’s when Kejriwal decided to hold his dharna right there.”

The sources also said that there was no contact with anyone in the Centre on the first day of the dharna. In fact, both the sides had hardened their stand. Kejriwal declared he was an anarchist and that if women were unprotected what was the point of celebrating Republic Day, while Shinde said the suspension or transfer of police officials was not even a subject of consideration.

But the night spent by Kejriwal at the dharna site – coupled with cold and the looming deadline of January 26 preparations – set the ball rolling for talks. AAP sources now say that despite the all the grandstanding on Republic Day, none of the AAP leaders were in favour of disturbing the parade. Some leaders felt the party could stretch the dharna by another day and this was discussed at the Tuesday evening meeting. But a majority was in favour of calling off the dharna.