The Supreme Court on Thursday, 2 November, commenced the hearing on a batch of pleas filed by the Delhi government against the High Court verdict, which had held that Delhi is not a state and the Lieutenant Governor (LG) is its administrative head.
Senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam, appearing for the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party government, initiated the argument before a five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra.
He told a bench, which also comprised of Justices AK Sikri, AM Khanwilkar, DY Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan, that their plea challenges the Delhi High Court order of 4 August 2016, in which the court said LG is the administrative head of Delhi, which is also a union territory.
He said the challenge is to Article 239 AA by virtue of which special status is accorded to Delhi. The apex court, on 15 February, had referred to a constitution bench the pleas filed by the AAP government against the High Court verdict.
The city government told the apex court on 2 February that it has exclusive executive powers in relation to matters falling within the purview of the Legislative Assembly and neither the Centre nor the President or the LG can encroach upon these.
The SC, however, said that it is correct that the elected government should have some powers but whether it will be as per the Delhi High Court verdict or as it is being perceived by the Delhi government, needed to be looked into.
The Constitution has given a face and identity to a government in Delhi after inclusion of Article 239AA, and the executive decisions taken and implemented by it cannot be reversed by the LG, it had contended.
The apex court had on 14 December 2016, observed that the Delhi government should have some powers otherwise it cannot function.
On 9 September 2016, the SC had refused to grant an interim stay on the verdict of the Delhi High Court.
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