The AAP government informed the Delhi High Court that Chief Minister Atishi has forwarded CAG reports on various issues to the Lieutenant Governor for assembly consideration. The BJP allege that the government failed to table these reports, breaching legal obligations. The pending CAG reports from 2022-2024 include critical topics of public health, pollution, and revenue.
New Delhi: The AAP government informed the Delhi High Court on Thursday that Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, who also holds the finance portfolio, has forwarded the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports on liquor duty, pollution, and finance to the Lieutenant Governor (LG) for placement before the Delhi Legislative Assembly.
However, senior advocate Sudhir Nandrajog, representing the Delhi government, stated,
“I have oral instructions that the finance minister (Delhi Chief Minister Atishi) has forwarded the files to the LG. But I will not make any statement unless I get it in writing from them.”
The LG’s counsel confirmed that 10 files were received by the LG’s office on the night of December 11. The High Court granted both parties time to file their affidavits on these developments and scheduled the next hearing for December 16.
The issue arises from a petition filed by Leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta and BJP MLAs Mohan Singh Bisht, Om Prakash Sharma, Ajay Kumar Mahawar, Abhay Verma, Anil Kumar Bajpai, and Jitendra Mahajan. They allege that the Delhi government is breaching its statutory duty by failing to promptly table the CAG reports before the assembly, as required by the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) Act.
“Despite the LG’s repeated requests and constitutional obligation, these reports were not sent to the LG and consequently, could not be tabled in the Delhi Legislative Assembly,”
the plea claims.
The petition highlights that eight CAG reports on topics such as air pollution, revenue, social and general sectors, PSUs, liquor policy, public health, and care for children in need were pending from 2022 to 2024. It further alleges that 12 reports from 2017-2018 to 2021-2022 had also not been tabled.
The CAG, in its reply, confirmed that these reports were pending with the Delhi government, which is required by law to place them before the assembly.
“The Delhi government has to place the audit reports submitted by it before the assembly, and it has in the past written to the principal secretary (finance), requesting him to do the same,”
the CAG stated.
The BJP MLAs contend that the government’s inaction has hindered transparency on critical matters like pollution and public revenue. They allege that earlier appeals to the Chief Minister, Chief Secretary, and Speaker had gone unanswered, prompting their legal action.
The court also issued notices in October to the Delhi government, the LG, the assembly speaker, and the CAG. As the assembly session concluded on December 4, the matter has gained urgency in ensuring compliance with constitutional obligations.
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