okebet Delhi HC Says AAP Govt 'Dragged Its Feet To Raise Doubts' Over CAG Report Tabling At Assembly

Row over CAG reports delayed for tabling in Delhi Assembly | Photo: PTI Row over CAG reports delayed for tabling in Delhi Assembly | Photo: PTI

The Delhi High Court on Monday hearing a petition by Bharatiya Janata Party MLAs seeking a session in Delhi Assembly for the Comptroller and Auditor General reports to be tabled, said the state government dragged its feet and pointing out the timeline of the issue, said it is rasing "doubts on its bonafides".

Opposition leader Vijender Gupta and BJP MLAs Mohan Singh Bisht, Om Prakash Sharma, Ajay Kumar Mahawar, Abhay Verma, Anil Kumar Bajpai and Jitendra Mahajan filed the petition last year and sought a direction to the speaker to call a session of the assembly for the purpose of tabling of the CAG reports.

Even though the CAG reports have not been officially released, the BJP claimed that it has highlighted some of the policies of the AAP-led Delhi government, including its now-scrapped excise policy for causing losses to the exchequer.

What Did Delhi HC Say?

Justice Sachin Datta, who was hearing a petition by the BJP MLAs, said the government should have promptly placed the CAG reports before the house for discussion.

"The way you dragged your feet raises doubts about your bonafides. You should have promptly forwarded the reports to the speaker," Justice Datta said, "and had a discussion in the house. The timeline is stark. See the way you have been dragging your feet is something that is unfortunate."

Justice Datta, during the hearing, said calling an assembly session was the prerogative of the speaker and asked if the court could pass a direction to the speaker to do it, especially when the elections were around the corner.

Senior counsel for the government raised an objection with respect to the "political" nature of the petition, and alleged the LG office had made the reports public and shared it with newspapers.

"How does it matter?" asked the court.

The hearing is underway.

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pirate slots BJP Slams Kejriwal Over CAG Report

The BJP Monday asked AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal if he considers himself above the Constitution as it attacked him over the Delhi government not tabling the CAG reports in the assembly.

BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said the constitutional scheme requires a government to table reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), which scrutinises its revenue and expenses, but the AAP dispensation has not done it.

"Does he consider himself above the Constitution?" he posed.

He alleged the "anarchist character" of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is pervading the constitutional system and Kejriwal has been acting like a "super chief minister".

(With PTI inputs)okebet