SC questions L-G Saxena's power to nominate members to MCD House

NEW DELHI:  The Supreme Court on Monday disputed L-G V K Saxena’s authority of nominating the members to the MCD House without the aid and advice of counsel of ministers. A bench of CJI D Y Chandrachud, Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala while hearing GNCTDs plea challenging the appointment of aldermen questioned “Under what authority does the administrator nominate the members to the MCD without the aid and advice? This is to be exercised on aid and advice.” 

The SC granted L-G the time to file its response in the pleas and posted them for April 17.  The L-G in January had nominated 10 members to the MCD under Section 3(3)(b)(i) of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 and also issued a gazette notification in this regard. For the L-G, ASG Sanjay Jain said that the same was after the amendment introduced in Section 45 of the GNCTD Act.

Terming Jain’s submission as “patently wrong”, senior advocate AM Singhvi said that officers on January 2, 2023, had sent the files directly to the L-G by bypassing the CM and council of ministers. “The L-G on January 3 without aid and advice nominates 10 members. The fact that this MCD is divided into 12 zones and each has a ward committee. The ward committee with these nominated members elects a standing committee. Decisions will start being taken by the standing committee and the whole object will be patently illegal. His whole case is based on a statute,” Singhvi said.