Supreme Court Seeks Centre Reply On Delhi Ordinance, But Doesn't Pause It

There will be no freeze on the Centre's executive order controlling the bureaucrats posted in Delhi, the Supreme Court said today in response to a petition by Delhi's Aam Aadmi Party government, which had challenged the constitutional validity of the Centre's order. But the court has issued a notice to the Centre following the Delhi government's petition.

"We will issue notice to amend the petition to implead the Lieutenant Governor," said Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud. The next hearing is on Monday, when the court will also hear the Delhi government's petition on the Lieutenant Governor sacking 400 specialists like fellows, research officers.

The Lieutenant Governor is "acting like a super CM," Delhi had told the court in its petition, filed shortly after the Centre passed the executive order last month. The Ordinance over-rides the Supreme Court order given barely a week ago that said only the Delhi government was the boss.   

Except for issues linked to land, police and public order, the Lieutenant Governor has "no independent decision-making powers" under the Constitution, said the five-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice Chandrachud, which had looked into whether the Central government has administrative control over transfers and postings of civil servants in the national capital.

The case has its roots in 2018, when the Arvind Kejriwal government had gone to court, arguing that its decisions were constantly being over-ridden by the Lieutenant Governor, who acts as the Centre's representative in Delhi.

Transfers and appointments of officials was one of the first flashpoints between Mr Kejriwal's government and the Lieutenant Governor.

Mr Kejriwal frequently complained that he could not appoint even a "peon" or transfer an officer. Bureaucrats didn't obey his government's orders as their cadre controlling authority was the Home Ministry, he also said.