October 4th 2024.
The Supreme Court of India raised concerns on Friday regarding the haste shown by the lieutenant governor's office in organizing the elections for the sixth member of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD)'s standing committee. The court also expressed disapproval of the interference of the electoral process by the office. Justices PS Narasimha and R Mahadevan, who were presiding over the case, instructed LG VK Saxena to refrain from holding elections for the position of chairman of the MCD's standing committee until the next hearing.
During the brief hearing, the court criticized the use of executive power under Section 487 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act by the LG's office to conduct the standing committee member's election on September 27. The bench questioned the source of power to interrupt the electoral process and stated that it was not meant for meddling with legislative functions. It also expressed concern for the impact on democracy if such interference continued, warning that it could put democracy in danger.
Section 487 of the DMC Act empowers the Delhi Lieutenant Governor to intervene in the functioning of the municipal corporation. The bench gave LG's office two weeks to respond to a petition filed by Mayor Shelly Oberoi against the September 27 standing committee polls. The court also warned senior advocate Sanjay Jain, representing the LG's office, that it would take the matter seriously if an election was held for the MCD Standing Committee chairman.
Initially, the court was not inclined to entertain the petition, as it did not want to set a precedent of people rushing to the Supreme Court for every issue. However, upon review of the exercise of powers under Section 487 of the DMC Act by the LG, the court deemed it necessary to issue a notice. The bench stated that it had serious doubts about the legality and validity of LG's powers. It also mentioned that there were other issues related to the mayor's decisions that needed to be examined.
Jain raised a preliminary objection to the maintainability of the petition, arguing that the elections had already taken place and could only be challenged through an election petition. He also pointed out that the mayor had postponed the elections to October 5, going against the court's direction to fill the vacancy within a month. The bench noted that there seemed to be a political angle to the whole situation, and it believed that the exercise of power under Section 487 was wrong, especially considering that the elections were held in the absence of the mayor.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Oberoi, argued that the entire issue was centered around the elections for the standing committee's chairman, and they had planned to hold the elections during the Dussehra break when the apex court was closed. In response, the bench asked Jain to refrain from holding the elections until the matter was heard again.
Oberoi's plea claimed that the elections for the standing committee were organized under the directions of the LG's office, and the presiding officer was a municipal commissioner who was an IAS officer. She argued that only the mayor had the authority to decide the date, time, and venue of the standing committee's elections. In the last vacant seat of the MCD's 18-member standing committee, the BJP won unopposed as the ruling AAP councillors abstained from voting.
In August 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that the law allows the lieutenant governor to nominate aldermen to the MCD, regardless of the council of ministers' advice. This ruling was in response to the Delhi government's plea challenging the LG's power to appoint 10 aldermen in the MCD without the council of ministers' aid and advice. The MCD has 250 elected members and 10 nominated members. In the civic elections held in December 2022, the Aam Aadmi Party defeated the BJP, ending the saffron party's 15-year rule in the MCD. The BJP won 104 seats, and the Congress secured nine seats.
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