GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHI versus UNION OF INDIA & ANOTHER

Citation: [2018] 7 S.C.R. 1 · Decided: 04-07-2018 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: DIPAK MISRA · Disposal: Directions issued

Cited by 18 judgment(s) · cites 42 · see the full citation network in Lexace

Judgment (excerpt)

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[2018]  7  S.C.R. 1
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GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHI
v.
UNION OF INDIA & ANOTHER
(Civil Appeal No. 2357 of 2017)
JULY 04, 2018
[DIPAK MISRA, CJI, A. K. SIKRI, A. M. KHANWILKAR,
DR. D. Y. CHANDRACHUD AND ASHOK BHUSHAN, JJ.]
Constitution of India:
Art. 239AA and 239AB – Special provisions with respect to
Delhi – National Capital Territory of Delhi – Status of – Held: NCT
of Delhi cannot be accorded the status of a State under the present
constitutional scheme – Status of NCT of Delhi is sui generis – Status
of Lieutenant Governor of Delhi is not that of a Governor of a
State, rather he remains an Administrator, in a limited sense, working
with the designation of Lieutenant Governor – LG cannot act
independently and is bound by the aid and advice of the elected
council of ministers subject to proviso to Art. 239 AA to refer the
matter to the Parliament – Decisions of the Council of Ministers
must be communicated to the Lieutenant Governor but this does not
mean that the concurrence of the Lieutenant Governor is required
– Power of the Lieutenant Governor under proviso to Art. 239AA(4)
has to be exercised in exceptional circumstances keeping in mind
the standards of constitutional trust and morality, principle of
collaborative federalism and constitutional balance, the concept
of constitutional governance and objectivity and the nurtured and
cultivated idea of respect for a representative government –
Lieutenant Governor should not act in a mechanical manner without
due application of mind so as to refer every decision of the Council
of Ministers to the President – Exercise of establishing a democratic
and representative form of government for NCT of Delhi by insertion
of Arts. 239AA and 239AB would turn futile if the Government of
Delhi is not able to usher in policies and laws over which the Delhi
Legislative Assembly has power to legislate for the NCT of Delhi –
Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991.
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2018] 7 S.C.R.
Art. 239AA – Interpretation of – Held: Interpretative dissection
of Art.239AA(3)(a) reveals that the Parliament has the power to
make laws for the NCT of Delhi with respect to any matters
enumerated in State List and Concurrent List – Legislative Assembly
of Delhi also has power to make laws over all those subjects which
figure in Concurrent List and all, but three excluded subjects (public
order, police and land), in the State List – As a natural corollary,
Union of India has exclusive executive power with respect to NCT
of Delhi relating to the three matters in the State List in respect of
which the power of Delhi Legislative Assembly has been excluded –
In respect of other matters, the executive power is to be exercised
by the Government of NCT of Delhi – This, however, is subject to
the proviso to Article 239AA(4) – Such an interpretation would be
in consonance with the concepts of pragmatic federalism and federal
balance by giving the Government of NCT of Delhi some required
degree of independence subject to the limitations imposed by the
Constitution.
Representative governance – Ideals/principles of – Held: In
a democratic republic, the sovereign elect their law making
representatives for enacting laws and shaping policies – Main
purpose of representative government is to represent the public will
– Elected representatives being accountable to the public must be
accessible, approachable and act in a transparent manner – Thus,
the elected representatives must display constitutional objectivity
as a standard of representative governance.
Constitutional morality and constitutional objectivity –
Concept of – Held: Constitutional morality is that fulcrum which
acts as an essential check upon the high functionaries and citizen
alike – Further, the theory of checks and balance gives rise to
principle of constitutional objectivity – Constitutional trust expects
the functionaries under the Constitution to be guided by
constitutional morality, objective pragmatism and the balance,
required to sustain proper administration – Lieutenant Governor
need not, in a mechanical manner, refer every decision of the Council
of Ministers to the President – He has to be guided by the concept
of constitutional morality and is to act with constitutional objectivity.
Constitutional governance and the conception of legitimate
constitutional trust – Held: Concept of constitutional governance
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has two features, the principles of fiduciary nature o

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