Why hold assembly session outside, asks Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked the city government to inform it about any provision in law that allows the government to hold an assembly session outside its designated place.

A division bench of Justice B.D. Ahmed and Justice Sidharth Mridul, hearing a plea against the proposal to hold a session outside the assembly building to pass the Jan Lokpal Bill, sought the government response by Thursday.

"When you (the government) have a legislative assembly (building), tell us what is the need of holding assembly at another place. Tell us whether there is any bar in law to hold assembly outside the (designated) premises," asked the bench.

The bench asked counsel representing the government to apprise it whether the lt governor approved of holding an assembly session in a stadium.

The court's order came on a plea filed by Kedar Mandal, an assistant professor in Delhi University, against the decision of the government to hold the assembly session outside the designated premises saying it will incur an expenditure of Rs.50 lakh.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has decided to hold an open assembly session on the Jan Lokpal Bill at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium starting from Feb 14.