Chief Minister and Lieutenant Governor are to meet every Friday for administrative coordination. (File)

New Delhi:

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal met with Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena for their regular Friday meeting after skipping the last three times after CBI raids on his deputy, Manish Sisodia. 

They last met on August 12, but did not on August 19, the day the CBI raided Mr Sisodia’s house over an alleged scam in the liquor policy. The next Friday, August 26, the AAP leadership was in Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state, for poll campaigning. 

Today’s the third Friday since the CBI action over the New Excise Policy that had brought private players into the liquor trade. It was in was withdrawn in July — remained in force for eight months — as the Lieutenant Governor ordered a CBI probe. 

The Kejriwal-led AAP has said the probe and all are a ploy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government, which appoints the Lieutenant Governor. “This is political vendetta using central agencies such as the CBI,” the party has said. 

It has hit back at VK Saxena directly, too, with scam allegations — pointing fingers at his seven-year tenure as Khadi and Village Industries Commission just before he got the Delhi post earlier this year. 

Angry exchanges have since been almost a daily affair, including dramatic moments for camera. 

Mr Saxena sent a defamation notice to AAP leaders. And one of them, Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh, tore the notice to shreds on video. The AAP government also held a special session to underline its majority in the House, where speeches were made claiming the scam allegations were to stop the AAP’s national expansion under Mr Kejriwal.

Mr Saxena has denied any wrongdoings in his Khadi Commission tenure, saying the AAP is giving wrong figures about a contract awarded to his daughter for designing a Khadi Lounge in Mumbai.

As for the meeting today, it would have routine administrative matters to be discussed. The agenda is not shared with the media.