AAP govt, LG office should work with coordination to serve people: Official

With the Supreme Court clarifying the Constitutional position on the control over services matter in Delhi, the elected AAP government and the office of Lt Governor should now work with "dignity and coordination" to serve the people of Delhi, several former and serving bureaucrats said on Thursday.

According to former Delhi government chief secretary Ramesh Negi the administrative setup in the city comprises "two wills" -- one is the will of the President expressed through the Lt Governor, and the second is the will of the people represented by the elected government.

"We expect that after the constitutional position on the services matter has been cleared by the Supreme Court, one should not go for positioning this way or that in the interest of the people of the Delhi. There should be synergy between the two sides for greater good of Delhi and its people," he said.

The former Delhi Chief secretary said "dignity and coordination" between the elected government and the office of LG will ensure there is no more fighting over governance issues.

IAS officer K Mahesh, the honourary president of Delhi Administration Officers' Academic Forum, said the judgement of the apex court was binding on all stake-holders.

"As a bureaucrat, it is our bounden duty to abide by the Constitution and the laws of the land to serve the State and the society. The judgement of the Hon'ble apex court is the law of the land and is binding on everyone under Article 141 of the Constitution of India, and we are bound by the same," he said.

Some bureaucrats, however, feared the officers serving the Delhi government will be in a "vulnerable" position despite the Supreme Court order.

"There are two aspects of the SC verdict. One is that the elected government should have a say in the administration. Another aspect is that in the present scenario in Delhi, the officers are likely to become more vulnerable," said P L Tripathi, former chief secretary of Delhi government.

He said that elected representatives and officers should have both decision-making powers as well as accountability. "Officers must also have some protection while ensuring accountability."

Tripathi said prior to 2015, transfer of officers happened at the level of the Chief Minister, without any major problems.

"It was like an unwritten convention that the Chief Minister's recommendations were sent for approval of the LG. It was rare that the LG differed with Chief Minister's recommendations, and that too over one or two names," he stated.

A top serving bureaucrat in the Delhi government said, "It is clear that the Supreme Court has effected a change in the current situation. Earlier, the LG used to have a complete say in matters related to Services but now that will see a change," he stated.

The Delhi government has legislative and executive powers over administration of services except for public order, police and land, the Supreme Court has ruled, in a huge victory for the ruling AAP dispensation in its longstanding tussle with the Centre over governance matters.

A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud put an end to the eight-year-old dispute between the Centre and the Delhi government triggered by a 2015 home ministry notification asserting its control over services, holding the National Capital Territory administration is unlike other Union Territories and has been accorded a sui generis' (unique) status by the Constitution.

Against the backdrop of frequent run-ins between the AAP government and the Centre's point man, the lieutenant governor, the apex court asserted an elected government needs to have control over bureaucrats, failing which the principle of collective responsibility will be adversely affected.