The Lieutenant Governor, the court said, has to act on the aid and advice of the elected government and cannot function as "an obstructionist".Definitely not summer we had hoped for. In a landmark verdict in 2018, the Supreme Court said the elected government of Delhi is the boss and that the Lieutenant Governor has no independent decision-making powers under the Constitution, except for issues linked to land, police and public order. The Delhi Government approached the court in 2018, arguing that its decisions were constantly overruled by the Lieutenant Governor, that appointments were cancelled, files not cleared, and basic decision-making was obstructed. He alleged that bureaucrats didn't obey his government's orders as their cadre-controlling authority was the Union Home Ministry. "Our work will now resume at 10 times the speed," Mr Kejriwal said, promising a "lean, thin, responsive, passionate and accountable" government.Īrvind Kejriwal has often complained that he could not so much as appoint a "peon" without the Centre's say-so. He announced that soon, there would be transfers to remove corrupt officers and bring in honest, hard-working officers. Both my hands were tied and I was pushed into the river, but I kept swimming, by grace of God," said Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi. They (Centre) stalled all our work deliberately using their appointees. If an officer feels they are insulated from the elected government they feel they are not accountable," said the Chief Justice.ĭelhi's ruling AAP celebrated its victory after years of bickering with different Lieutenant Governors since it came to power in 2013. If an officer is not responding to the government, the collective responsibility is diluted. "If a democratically elected government is not allowed to control its officers and hold them to account, then its responsibility towards legislature and the public is diluted. While the Lt Governor has powers, they do not mean administration over the entire Delhi government, "otherwise the purpose of having a separate elected body in Delhi will be rendered futile", said the Supreme Court.
The Lt Governor is also bound by the aid and advice of the council of ministers, they said. The Lieutenant Governor, who represents the Centre in Delhi, is bound by the elected government's decision on services, the judges ruled. The five-judge Constitution Bench tackled the question of who has administrative control over transfers and postings of bureaucrats in the capital. "If officers stop reporting to the ministers or do not abide by their directions, the principle of collective responsibility is affected," Chief Justice DY Chandhrachud said, reading out the order.
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