LG Saxena temporarily dissolves Delhi govt think tank, AAP hits out at ‘petty politics’

LG office said that as per Saxena’s instructions, DDCD will remain suspended till a mechanism is developed for the screening of domain experts

Lieutenant governor VK Saxena on Thursday gave his nod to temporarily dissolve the Delhi Dialogue and Development Commission (DDCD) and remove its three non-official members, officials in the LG’s office aware of the development said.

“The whole exercise of creating the DDCD by the incumbent government was only to extend financial benefits and extend patronage to certain favoured political persons of partisan inclinations,” said LG in his letter (Hindustan Times)

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government hit back, alleging that the decision is illegal, and stating that DDCD is under the jurisdiction of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

DDCD was created as a policy think-tank manned by domain experts, on the lines of the planning commission, to provide inputs of governance. The tenure of members of DDC was supposed to be co-terminus with the term of the present Government of NCT of Delhi.It was constituted through a gazette notification on April 29, 2016, after approval from then LG Najeeb Jung. Sections 3 and 8 of the notification states that non-official members of the body will be appointed solely by the CM, and only the CM has powers to remove any member before the completion of their term.

Officials in the LG’s office said that as per Saxena’s instructions, DDCD will remain suspended till a mechanism is developed for the screening and selection of domain experts as its vice chairman and members, as per the rules.

“The whole exercise of creating the DDCD by the incumbent government was only to extend financial benefits and extend patronage to certain favoured political persons of partisan inclinations... Politically appointed persons holding these positions, were allowed to continue on these positions at the whims and fancies of the Chief Minister. There was no screening through a transparent process, and huge salaries were paid from the public exchequer, which were incommensurate to the duties assigned... It is a blatant and clear case of nepotism and favouritism in utter disregard of all rules,” noted the LG in his letter to chief secretary Naresh Kumar.

HT has seen a copy of the letter.

The officials quoted above noted that the Delhi planning department, in a report in 2022, observed that there is no work allocation amongst DDCD members, and therefore, the continuation of non-official members drawing huge salaries — equivalent to that of a secretary to the Government of India — is not only “undesirable” but also “patently illegal”.

Saxena has also asked the finance department to explore the possibility of recovering the salaries paid to the non-official members, the officials said.

In response, the Delhi government said Saxena’s decision is illegal, unconstitutional, and a violation of the jurisdiction of his office.

“DDCD comes under the chief minister, and only he has powers to take action on its members. LG’s sole purpose in dissolving DDCD is to stop all the works of Delhi government, which has been his singular contribution to the governance of Delhi ever since he assumed office. We will challenge this illegal order of the LG in the courts,” a Delhi government spokesperson said.

Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said the decision is an example of petty politics.

“It is well known that all commissions, committees, and boards of the Central Government and state governments across India, including those in BJP-ruled states, often have political appointees without any formal tests or interviews,” Bhardwaj said.

The government spokesperson said that this is not the first time that the LG has attacked DDCD.

“Earlier, in November 2022, acting in a similar haste and brazen disregard of the jurisdiction of his office, LG ordered the sealing of the office of DDCD vice chairperson Jasmine Shah. The illegal order of the LG was challenged in the Delhi high court, and the matter is currently sub-judice. When the LG sought to further precipitate action on Jasmine Shah, the same was stayed by the high court since the matter was deemed to be sub-judice,” the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said the DDCD has lost its relevance.

“It is regrettable that the Arvind Kejriwal government misused DDCD, which was intended to facilitate development work, for the financial upliftment of political allies, thereby embroiling the commission, created with good written objectives, in controversies since its inception,” Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said.