The Supreme Court of India has made an important decision regarding the Delhi government’s petition against the Centre’s recent ordinance. The court has referred the case to a constitution bench for further adjudication. Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices P S Narasimha and Manoj Misra, who make up the bench, stated that a detailed order will be uploaded on the apex court website later in the day.
During the hearing, senior advocates Harish Salve and Abhishek Singhvi presented brief submissions on behalf of Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena and the Delhi government respectively. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta represented the Centre. The top court had previously issued notices to the Centre and the lieutenant governor in response to the plea, but declined to grant an interim stay on the ordinance regarding control over services in Delhi.
The Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Ordinance, 2023, which was promulgated by the Centre on May 19, created an authority for transfer and posting of Group-A officers in Delhi. This led to a clash with the Arvind Kejriwal government. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government accused the ordinance of being misleading and appealed to the Supreme Court for control of services to be handed over to the city government, except in matters of land, public order, and police.
