Delhi Assembly speaker Vijender Gupta said the existing powers of the committees within the boundaries laid down by the Constitution and the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) Amendment Act, 2021 is sufficient to fulfill its duties and there need be no apprehension that the Committees will be handicapped in its workings. Responding to AAP leader and former Chief Minister Atishi’s letter, Speaker Gupta acknowledged Atishi’s concerns but placed the blame for the current restrictions on what he described as the “vindictive manner of working†by the previous regime, which, he argued, compelled Parliament to amend the Act. Gupta asserted that earlier, Assembly Committees were allegedly used to “browbeat the bureaucrats and interfere in their working,†leading to the present legal boundaries.
Gupta said that, as per the 2021 Amendments, “none of the Committees, including the Financial Committees, will be examining matters of day-to-day administration of the Capital or conduct any inquiries in matters of administration till the Parliament in its wisdom reviews the amendments.†He emphasised that the Assembly or its Committees should not interfere in trivial administrative issues, and that the Speaker retains the prerogative to decide whether an issue falls within day-to-day administration—a decision that cannot be questioned. Addressing Atishi’s interpretation of the PAC’s powers, Gupta disagreed with the notion that the PAC can examine matters beyond appropriation accounts. He cited established parliamentary procedure, stating, “The PAC is the extension of the Assembly which examines such issues. I am sure it’s not your case that the Parliament and all the State Legislatures are wrong in considering the Reports of the C&AG other than the Appropriation Accountsâ€.
Gupta further referenced the authoritative treatise ‘Practice and Procedure in Parliament’ by MN Kaul and SL Shakdher, noting that the PAC’s functions extend “beyond the formality of expenditure to involving losses, nugatory expenditure and financial irregularities.†However, he reiterated that these powers must be exercised within the contours of the law as amended.
Atishi, in her letter dated May 6, 2025, had raised alarm over what she termed an “anomalous situation†created by the 2021 amendment. She argued that the Act has severely curtailed the powers of the Assembly’s Financial Committees, rendering them unable to effectively oversee executive accountability. Atishi cited the crucial role these committees have historically played, from resolving waterlogging issues and investigating corruption in cooperative banks to restoring diagnostic services in Mohalla Clinics. She warned that, under the amended law, the Assembly “shall not make any rule to enable itself or its committees to consider the matters of day-to-day administration of the Capital or conduct inquiries in relation to the administrative decisions,†effectively stripping the committees of their oversight function.
