The Supreme Court gave the upper hand to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the ongoing case against the Central Government appointed Lieutenant Governor.
The five judge bench restored the power of the Delhi council of ministers. They suggested the Governor can not thwart the policy decisions taken by the council ministers in the Union Territory.
According to the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, all decisions should be conveyed to the Lieutenant Governor but his agreement on all decisions is not necessary. Justice D. Y. Chandrachud says, “Real power to make decisions must rest with the elected representatives of the State.”
This comes as a landmark judgement from the SC curbing the Lieutenant Governor’s power and ordering him to aid the elected representatives decision.
Soon after the SC judgement, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal directed his cabinet ministers and officials to accelerate the projects and work according to the verdict. He tweeted “…Directed all functionaries of Del govt to function according to the order of Hon’ble SC. Also directed to expedite proposals of doorstep delivery of rations and CCTV now (sic.)”
This judgement is a welcoming note for democracy after a three year long battle. According to the CM, this is a “big victory” for the people of Delhi and will restore their faith in the judiciary.
Hailing the judgement, Delhi Government has fast tracked the agenda of ration delivery at the door–step, implementation of CCTV cameras, regularization of contractual workers and appointment of teachers in the Union territory.
