The Supreme Court has settled the long-drawn-out question of who is to run Delhi — the elected Government or the lieutenant Governor — once and for all with the unanimous verdict clearly going in favour of the former. The ruling is based on the sound premise that real power cannot but rest with the elected Government in a democracy as it represents the popular will.
No doubt, the verdict was a shot in the arm of the Aam Aadmi Party and vindicated Arvind Kejriwal’s ‘sofa dharna’ in the house of the lieutenant General, but its significance goes beyond ‘party politics’ in that it has laid down the powers of the elected Government and the lieutenant Governor for all to follow despite political hues.
The verdict now also applies to Puducherry where Kiran Bedi almost seeks to run a parallel administration despite an elected Government in place. The Governor cannot now refuse to accept that he is Constitutionally obliged to act on the advice of the Council of Ministers. He cannot act as proxy for the Union Government and obstruct the Delhi Government in implementing its policies. He has to be content with his jurisdiction. In the light of the landmark verdict, the Union Government should end confrontation with the AAP Government and extend cooperation for better governance.
