Supreme Court rules Delhi LG cannot block elected government, a win for Kejriwal

India वोट Kar | July 5, 2018

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled unanimously, by 5-0, that Delhi’s elected government has the power to legislate and act on matters within its jurisdiction, and that the lieutenant governor’s agreement is not needed for such decisions. The judgment, however, left in place the LG’s power to refer disagreements to the President, as long as he does not use it “mechanically”.

What the court said

The Constitution bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices Ashok Bhushan, D Y Chandrachud, A M Khanwilkar and A K Sikri delivered judgments running to 535 pages in total, with three concurring opinions. The Chief Justice authored the main 237-page judgment, joined by Justices Khanwilkar and Sikri; Justices Chandrachud and Bhushan agreed in separate opinions.

The court held that the council of ministers headed by the Chief Minister must keep the LG informed of its proposals and decisions, but does not require his prior consent on subjects within the assembly’s legislative competence. According to the bench, the LG has no independent decision-making power: he is bound either to follow the elected ministers’ aid and advice or to carry out a decision of the President on a matter he has referred.

Under Article 239AA(4), the LG may send a decision of the ministers or of the assembly to the President if he disagrees with it, and may take urgent administrative action while the reference is pending. The judges said this was an exception for exceptional circumstances, not a routine tool. Justice Chandrachud added that a reference should follow only after dialogue fails, since sending every dispute upward would in effect hand the President control of Delhi’s administration.

What did not change

The ruling did not alter the arrangement under which public order, police and land in the capital remain with the Centre. The court also described Delhi as a Union territory rather than a full state and said the LG is not merely a titular head. As a result, the verdict may reduce, but is unlikely to end, standoffs between the AAP government and the BJP-led Centre, though it gives Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s party a strong political talking point.

The Chief Justice also urged both sides to settle their differences through discussion and mutual respect, remarking, “Neither of the authorities should feel they have been lionised.”