Delhi HC to hear BJP legislators' plea against suppression of CAG reports by CM Atishi
Delhi High Court (File/Photo)
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday agreed to hear on October 29 a plea filed by BJP legislators seeking direction to the Delhi government to forward 12 reports prepared by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to the Lt. Governor.
The petition said that CAG reports relating to pollution and rules and regulations related to alcohol were not placed before the Lt. Governor by the Finance Ministry and remains pending with Chief Minister Atishi, who also holds the portfolio of Finance Minister.
A Bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela directed urgent listing of the matter on Tuesday.
"Despite the Lt. Governor's repeated requests and constitutional obligation, these reports were not sent to the Lt. Governor and consequently, could not be tabled in the Delhi Legislative Assembly,” said the plea filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs Vijender Gupta, Mohan Singh Bisht, Om Prakash Sharma, Ajay Kumar Mahawar, Abhay Verma, Anil Bajpai and Jitender Mahajan.
It added that the Opposition leaders tried their best for tabling of the CAG reports when the Vidhan Sabha session was held on September 26-27 after a long gap but "no action was taken for such tabling of the reports".
The petition said that this deliberate suppression of vital information not only violates democratic principles but also prevents proper scrutiny of government action and expenditures, raising serious questions about the government's financial proprietary, transparency and accountability.
It further said that the delay was not merely a procedural oversight but a serious violation of our constitutional obligations, when the CAG has been forwarding the audit reports for laying before the Delhi Assembly.
It said that the Comptroller and Auditor General of India is a "constitutional watchdog" created with the objective of providing independent and credible assurance to the public, the legislature and the executive that the public funds are being collected and being used effectively and efficiently.