SC to hear Delhi govt plea on appointing DERC chairman on Tuesday

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud agreed to hear the case relating to the blocked proposal to appoint DERC chairman on Tuesday.

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear the Delhi government’s petition seeking the appointment of Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chairperson which has been vacant since January.

The Delhi government earlier petitioned the Supreme Court in connection with the stalled appointment of DERC chairman (HT File Photo)

Senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi mentioned the case for urgent listing on Wednesday.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud agreed to hear the case on Tuesday.

The court issued notice on the petition in April and sought a response from the central government and the Lieutenant Governor’s office.

Singhvi told the court that the Delhi government sent a proposal to the LG for the appointment of a retired Madhya Pradesh high court judge as DERC chairperson before the post fell vacant. But no decision has been forthcoming, Singhvi said, requesting that the LG’s office be asked to submit their response before Tuesday.

The bench, also comprising justice PS Narasimha said: “If by Tuesday they do not file their response, we will ask them what is the problem.”

The LG hasn’t signed off on the proposal because Raj Niwas has sought legal advice if it needs to consult the Delhi high court chief justice.

The Delhi government said that under the Electricity Act, prior consultation with the chief justice of the parent high court was required and that the Aam Aadmi Party government consulted the chief justice of the Madhya Pradesh high court. The government also pointed that when former Allahabad high court’s justice Shabihul Hasnain was appointed in 2021, the government consulted the then chief justice of the Allahabad high court and not the Delhi high court.