Delhi Secretariat Tells High Court: "Presenting CAG Reports In Assembly Serves No Purpose"

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

The Delhi Secretariat stated that presenting Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports at this stage would serve no purpose since the legislative assembly session concludes in February. It emphasized that the Speaker’s authority to convene assembly sittings is an internal matter, falling beyond the scope of judicial scrutiny. This aligns with the assembly’s procedural independence and established practices.

The Delhi assembly secretariat informed the Delhi High Court that tabling the CAG reports on city administration in the assembly would serve no useful purpose, given that the assembly’s tenure concludes in February.

This response was made regarding a plea from seven BJP MLAs concerning the tabling of these reports.

The secretariat stated,

“The tenure of the present assembly is coming to an end in February 2025, and the last session was held on December 4, 2024. This implies that the reports from the Comptroller and Auditor General of India mentioned in the writ petition will not be examined by the PAC before the assembly’s term expires.”

It added,

“No useful purpose will be served if the said reports are laid before the House at this juncture, as these reports could only be subjected to thorough examination by the successor PAC elected by the next assembly after the elections.”

The secretariat emphasized that the speaker’s discretion to convene a sitting of the legislative assembly is part of its internal functioning and falls outside the scope of judicial review.

According to the reply, the reports could now be examined under the legal framework by the new public accounts committee formed by the next assembly following the upcoming elections.

Conversely, the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) submitted a response asserting that the High Court could direct the speaker to ensure the immediate tabling of the reports.

The L-G noted the “extraordinary delay” in presenting the audit reports and argued that the people of Delhi have a right to access the CAG reports. On December 24, the High Court issued a notice regarding the petitioners’ request for the speaker to fulfill its constitutional obligation and summon a special assembly session to present the reports.