Centre-Delhi govt. tussle: SC refers issue to Constitution Bench

The Union and the Arvind Kejriwal governments are locked in a battle for the control over bureaucrats in the Capital.

The Supreme Court on Friday referred to a Constitution Bench the battle between the Centre and Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government for control over bureaucrats in the Capital.

A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana said the tussle between the Union and Delhi governments over the limited question concerning ‘services’ or bureaucracy required an authoritative pronouncement by a five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court.

The CJI, who read out the order in open court, said the court did not “deem it necessary to revisit” any other issues, between the Centre and the Delhi government, which had already been settled in the earlier judgment of the court in 2018.

Four years ago, a Constitution Bench had unanimously held that the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi was bound by the “aid and advice” of the popularly-elected Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government and both had to work harmoniously with each other. It had noted that there was no room for anarchy or absolutism in a democracy.

However, reading the order, Chief Justice Ramana pointed out that the 2018 judgment had not specifically dealt with the issue of ‘services’.

The National Capital Territory government had compared its predicament without power over the ‘services’ like that of a king without a kingdom. The situation was such that a “democratic representative government” had to get the approval of the Lieutenant Governor to appoint a Health Secretary or a Commerce Secretary, it had argued.

The 2018 judgment had made it clear that the powers of the Centre and the Delhi government were collective and coextensive, senior advocate A.M. Singhvi, for the Delhi government, had submitted.