No use tabling CAG reports in assembly now: Assembly secretariat to Delhi HC

Delhi assembly secretariat informs Delhi High Court no purpose in tabling CAG reports before assembly tenure ends.

The Delhi assembly secretariat has informed the Delhi High Court that no useful purpose would be served in tabling the CAG reports on city administration in the assembly when its tenure ends in February.

Delhi assembly secretariat made the submission in response to a plea by seven BJP MLAs on the issue of tabling of CAG reports in the assembly.

“The tenure of the present assembly is coming to an end in February and the last session of the assembly was held on December 4, 2024, implying the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India cited in the writ petition will not be reviewed and examined by the PAC before the tenure of the present Assembly expires,” the CAG reply to the court said.

It said, “No useful purpose will be served if the said reports are laid down before the House at this juncture of time, as these reports could be subjected to closer and detailed examination only by the successor PAC to be elected by the next Assembly, which will be constituted after the elections.”

Being the guardian of the house under the Constitution, the secretariat said, the speaker’s discretion to summon a sitting of the legislative assembly was part of its internal functioning, which was outside the purview of any judicial review.

It said the CAG reports could now be examined as per the legal framework of the legislature’s successor public accounts committee (PAC), which would be elected by the next assembly post the upcoming elections.

The L-G, on the other hand, filed a reply in the matter, claiming the court was empowered to direct the speaker to ensure the tabling of the reports before the house immediately.