A bill that seeks to make clear that “government” in Delhi means “lieutenant governor” was approved by Lok Sabha on Monday amid strong opposition from Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party who said the legislation is “unconstitutional” . Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said that the Delhi National Capital Territory Government (Amendment) Bill of 2021 has become necessary as there has been ambiguity on certain issues related to the operation of the Delhi government and several cases have also been presented. in the tribunals.
According to the bill, the “government” in Delhi means the “lieutenant governor” and also obliges the government of Delhi to take the opinion of the LG before any executive action. “Please do not say it is a political bill. Ambiguity on certain issues is being ended as Delhi is a Union territory. It will end some confusion or technicality and improve the efficiency of the administration.” He said.
Reddy also stressed that when introducing the bill “there has been no murder of democracy.” The minister said that when the GNCTD Act was enacted in 1991 by the then congressional government, Delhi became a Union Territory (UT) with an assembly with “limited legislative powers.” “We didn’t do that. It was a congressional government that tested the law at that time,” he said.
Reddy said the Lieutenant Governor (LG) is a manager, so he has the right to know day-to-day affairs. “We have not taken any power from the Delhi government nor have we given LG any additional power,” he said. He strongly objected to the reference by some members of the opposition that “the Modi government is dictatorial” and said that the NDA government has not done anything wrong or new, but has eliminated ambiguity and brought clarity to the government. from Delhi.
“If we are wrong, we will listen to the abuses. But without being mistaken, we will not tolerate the abuses. It aims to bring more transparency,” said Reddy. He said that there have been cordial relations between the central and Delhi governments since 1996, and all differences were resolved through discussions.
However, since 2015, some problems have arisen and cases have been brought before the Delhi High Court, which also rendered certain rulings, Reddy said. He said the court had also ruled that the LG should be briefed on executive matters from the city government.
Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party has opposed the bill. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had even urged the central government to withdraw the bill and said the AAP dispensation was set to fall at the feet of the Modi government for withdrawal. Opening the debate, Congressman Manish Tewari said the bill is “unconstitutional” and removes certain city government rights that were granted under a constitutional amendment, a charge rejected by the BJP.
The measure is contrary to what the then Union Minister of the Interior, LK Advani, had perceived about 18 years ago, he said. Tewari opined that the bill seeks to prevent the city government from implementing the decisions made by the legislative assembly.
BJP member Meenakashi Lekhi, who represents New Delhi’s seat in Lok Sabha, said the bill seeks to rectify Delhi’s alleged mismanagement and blamed both Congress and the ruling AAP for it. He argued that the Constitution is not federal in nature, but quasi-federal, where the opinion of the Center cannot be ignored.
Lekhi said Congress could have granted full statehood to Delhi if it had wanted to. AAP member Bhagwant Mann claimed that the central government is a “specialist in abusing” the rights of the states and wants to rule Delhi through the “viceroy soul”.
While vehemently opposing the bill, Mann, the only Lok Sabha member of AAP, wonders if the Center wants to turn the national capital into a Union territory like Jammu and Kashmir where there is an assembly, but it is not functional anymore. that no elections have been held. since UT was made. He said that when the Prime Minister of Delhi cannot make any decisions, then what is the use of conducting polls in the assembly?
“The Center is a specialist in abusing the rights of states, whether in agricultural laws or in state governments through Governors or LG,” he said. Underlining that Delhi is the seat of the central government, BJP MP Brijendra Singh said that “an anarchist” came to power in the national capital in 2013 and during his rule, had Delhi been granted full state status. , it would have resulted in a “civil war”. Emphasizing that the bill goes against the spirit of cooperative federalism, PNC member Supriya Sule said it should be referred to Parliament’s select committee for more detailed deliberations. According to the exposition of the objects and the reasons for the bill, the original bill was passed to supplement the provisions of the Constitution regarding the Legislative Assembly and the Council of Ministers of Delhi and for matters related to them.
He said that to give effect to the interpretation made by the Supreme Court that had ruled that the city government does not need to obtain the “concurrence” of the lieutenant governor on all matters of daily governance, the bill has been presented. “The aforementioned bill will promote harmonious relations between the legislature and the executive, and will further define the responsibilities of the elected government and the LG, in line with the constitutional scheme of government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, as interpreted by the Supreme Court . “said the object declaration.
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