Headlines
Delhi contests home ministry notification, HC hearing on Friday
New Delhi, May 28
The Arvind Kejriwal-led
Delhi government on Thursday moved the Delhi High Court, challenging the
union home ministry's May 21 notification that said Lt. Governor Najeeb
Jung has discretionary powers for appointments and transfers to key
bureaucratic posts in the capital.
The Delhi government mentioned
the matter before a division bench of Justice B.D. Ahmed and Justice
Sanjeev Sachdeva, which posted the hearing for Friday.
Challenging the "constitutional validity" of the notification, the city government sought its quashing by the high court.
The
high court bench also posted for Friday a similar plea filed by law
student Vibhor Anand, who challenged the home ministry notification and
contended the appointment of senior bureaucrat Shakuntala Gamlin as the
acting chief secretary by the Delhi Lt. Governor was a "illegal".
"There is already a similar petition filed by the Delhi government. We will hear both on Friday," the bench said.
The
petitions, filed within days of a high court order terming the May 21
notification as "suspect", have contended that it was "ultra vires" of
the constitutional provisions, i.e. Article 239 AA (4), and that the
Centre does not have the jurisdiction over matters connected with
services of bureaucrats in the national capital.
"Additional
Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain informed the high court that the
Centre had also approached the Supreme Court to challenge the high court
order that termed 'suspect' its notification barring Delhi government's
anti-corruption branch (ACB) from acting against its officers in
criminal offences."
Law student Vibhor Anand in his PIL said:
"Delhi is neither a full state nor a union territory and Delhi is
governed by Articles 239-AA and 239-AB of Constitution of India (which
deals with union territories) introduced by a constitutional amendment
in 1991."
"As per Section 41 of the GNCT Act, 1991, the
Lieutenant Governor does not have any discretion to appoint Gamlin as
the chief secretary and other such posts, nor any special law granted
him this discretion," the petition read.
The petitioner also
said that the Lt. Governor is "dutybound by the aid and advice of the
council of ministers and the chief minister in all matters that concern
the legislative assembly as per Article 239 AA (4) of the Constitution
of India and Section 41 of the Government of National Capital Territory
of Delhi Act, 1991."
The petition highlighted a Supreme Court
constitutional bench judgment in which the phrase "aid and advice" as
used in Article 239-AA has been interpreted "to mean that the aid and
advice of the council of ministers and the chief minister is binding on
the Governor, it is not just advisory."
The turf war between
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung over the
control of key bureaucratic appointments was sparked by the appointment
of Gamlin as acting chief secretary of Delhi by the Lt. Governor on May
15.