Delhi govt moves SC over LG-led panels

Opposing the January 9 NGT order for what it said amounted to sidelining of the elected government, the appeal filed on Tuesday sought directions to set aside NGT’s order for violating two SC orders

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has approached the Supreme Court challenging an order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) appointing the Delhi lieutenant governor as the head of a high-level committee on Yamuna river pollution and solid waste management.

LG Saxena on Wednesday chaired a meeting to review the status of the Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPs) functioning in the industrial areas of the Capital. (ANI)

Opposing the January 9 NGT order for what it said amounted to sidelining of the elected government through an “unelected figurehead” who is “bound to act on the aid and advice of the council of ministers”, the appeal filed on Tuesday sought directions to set aside the green tribunal’s order for violating the two Supreme Court orders in July 2018 and on May 11, this year.

The plea acknowledged the need for interdepartmental coordination in the cleaning of the river and waste management. “In the petition, we have recognised the need for interdepartmental coordination to address Yamuna’s pollution and implement remedial measures, but strongly objected to the executive powers granted to the LG through the order. These powers encroach upon areas exclusively under the competence of the elected government of Delhi,” the AAP government said in a release issued on Wednesday.

The LG secretariat did not respond to HT’s queries for a comment on the development.

NGT created the Yamuna panel on January 9 while a waste panel was formed in February 16. In both the cases, the green panel expressed dissatisfaction over the works undertaken thus far in the city, pointing to a “lack of ownership and accountability”. LG VK Saxena since then has held regular review meetings and site inspections of the Yamuna and the three landfills in Delhi. The visits have sparked criticism by the AAP-led government, which claims that the LG is trying to steal the credit of the elected government, which the LG secretariat has denied.

In its appeal, the Delhi government has argued that according to the administrative structure in Delhi and the provisions of Article 239AA of the Constitution, the LG serves as a “nominal figurehead” except in matters pertaining to land, public order, and police.

“...the language used in the NGT order sidelines the elected government. The plea explains that granting executive powers to an authority that lacks the constitutional mandate to possess them undermines the elected government’s rightful jurisdiction. According to Article 239AA of the Constitution, the Lieutenant Governor is bound to act solely based on the aid and advice of the council of ministers, led by the Chief Minister,” the government has stated.

The central government has filed a review petition against a recent SC order that granted primacy to elected government over services while an ordinance has also been promulgated that essentially nullifies the May 11 ruling and grants LG the final say over services, transfer and postings.

Meanwhile, LG Saxena on Wednesday chaired a meeting to review the status of the Common Effluent Treatment Plants functioning in the industrial areas of the Capital. “The meeting sought to assess the role of CETPs in mitigating pollution in the Yamuna,” an LG secretariat official said, requesting anonymity.