Nominate our members in three working days: Delhi govt to DMRC

Delhi’s transport minister Kailash Gahlot has asked DMRC’s chief Mangu Singh to appoint the four Delhi government-nominated directors to the mass transporter’s board within three working days.

Transport minister Kailash Gahlot on Friday asked Mangu Singh, managing director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), to appoint the four Delhi government-nominated directors to the mass transporter’s board within three working days.

Transport minister Kailash Gahlot speaks during a press conference on the doorstep delivery of services scheme at Delhi Secretariat, in New Delhi on Sunday, September 16, 2018. (Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

“I would advise that the Board of DMRC passes the necessary resolution(s), appointing the said four nominee directors on the Board of DMRC. We would appreciate a prompt confirmation from your end in the aforesaid regard within three working days,” read the note sent to the Delhi Metro MD on Friday.

In his note sent to the DMRC chief on Friday, the transport minister asked Singh to also “immediately communicate” to the government the reasons why it has been unable to appoint the nominees yet.

The DMRC said it would not comment on the issue.

On July 13, the Delhi government, in a first, had nominated four non-bureaucratic persons as directors to the DMRC’s Board. While three of them — Atishi, Raghav Chadha and Naveen Gupta — are Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders, the fourth nominee is Jasmine Shah, vice-chairperson of the Dialogue and Development Commission, a policy think tank of the Delhi government.

Following this, on July 17, the ministry of housing and urban affairs wrote to the Delhi government, asking it to withdraw the four names. It said nominating non-government officers will be against the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) guidelines.

The Centre asked the Delhi government to instead nominate its top bureaucrats such as the chief secretary, finance secretary and transport commissioner, saying they will bring “domain knowledge”, “expertise” and “accountability” to drive the DMRC into a world-class transport service provider.

Earlier, Gahlot had defended Delhi government’s stand by saying the same DPE guidelines “strongly recommend” that “non-government officials” should be nominated as Board members. The minister said the guidelines further say the number of government directors on the Board of any public sector enterprise should not exceed one-sixth of the actual strength of the Board and should in no case exceed two.