"Delhi, Centre May Not Fight But...": Top Court During Hearing On Pollution

A double-engine government in Delhi may not translate to positive action to end air pollution in the national capital, the Supreme Court said today in a moment of light-hearted exchange. 

While hearing the issue of air pollution, the discussion turned to the change in government in Delhi. 

Amicus curiae in the case, senior advocate Aparajita Singh, remarked that she was relieved that there would no longer be any conflict between Delhi and the Center, with the BJP coming to power with a massive majority. During the rule of Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party government, "half the time was wasted in fighting and the issues remained unresolved," she said.

Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati said she hopes that there will be no conflict.

To this, the bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuiyan shot back, "This is the practical aspect of it. They may not be fighting. But it does not mean that they will be active".

The Aam Aadmi Party, after a decade of governing Delhi, was routed in last week's election, sliding from 62 to 22 seats in the capital. The BJP, which had eight seats, had gone up to 48. 

Besides corruption, AAP's defeat has been attributed to its failure to curb pollution of the Yamuna waters and the yearly atmospheric haze that chokes the National Capital Region. 

The criticism has been sharper after the party formed government in neighbouring Punjab -- one of the states along with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where stubble burning by farmers contributes massively to the smog blanket over north India.

With satellite images making it clear that the farm fires in Punjab continuing unabated, there were questions what the AAP government in the state was doing to control it. 

In the top court meanwhile, Ms Bhati sought permission to ease GRAP-IV measures that are currently enforced in Delhi. The bench said it would consider the issue on February 17 and asked the law officer to give a chart of the Air Quality Index.