The Supreme Court is set to deliver its verdict on August 5 regarding the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government’s challenge to the Lieutenant Governor’s decision to nominate aldermen to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) without consulting the council of ministers.
A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and including Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala had reserved its decision on May 17 last year. According to the Supreme Court’s website, Justice PS Narasimha will be delivering the verdict.
On May 17, the court had remarked that granting the Lieutenant Governor the power to nominate aldermen could potentially destabilize an elected civic body. The MCD consists of 250 elected members and 10 nominated members.
In December 2022, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won the civic elections, securing 134 wards and ending the BJP’s 15-year control of the MCD. The BJP won 104 seats, while the Congress came in third with nine seats.
The court had expressed concern that allowing the LG to nominate aldermen could destabilize the democratically elected MCD, as these aldermen have voting powers. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing the Delhi government, argued that historically, the LG nominated aldermen based on the advice of the city government for the past 30 years.
Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain, representing the LG’s office, contended that historical practices do not validate current actions. He argued that the LG’s nomination powers are derived from constitutional provisions and do not require the aid and advice of the elected government.
The Supreme Court had previously questioned the constitutional basis for the LG’s authority to make such nominations without consulting the elected government. The ASG argued that the LG’s role as the administrator involves direct appointments without the aid and advice of the council of ministers.
Singhvi cited a 2018 constitution bench judgment and recent rulings on service control to assert that the LG must act according to the government’s advice. He argued that the LG should have reverted to the previous practice of consulting the government on nominations.
The AAP government, through lawyer Shadan Farasat, has requested the court to quash the current nominations and direct the LG to follow the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act’s provisions for nominating members in accordance with the council of ministers’ advice.
