Revision as of 11:32, 28 May 2015

Statehood

The Times of India

Jan 12 2015

NDA govt's '03 Bill to confer Delhi statehood was not passed

How are states different from union territories?

Union territories are governed directly by the Centre. According to the Constitution's article 239 , ev ery UT shall be administrated by the president through an adminis trator appointed by himher. But two of the UTs, Puducherry and Delhi, are different in that there is a greater devolution of powers in their case. They are allowed to elect members of legislative assemblies and have a council of ministers with jurisdiction over depart ments such as education, health, power and power. Being the seat of the na tional government, the Delhi gov ernment has been denied control over vital departments such as po lice and land. This is why Delhi is far from a full fledged state.

What is the Government of Na tional Capital Territory Act?

This Act of 1991 inserted two special provisions in article 239 of the Indian constitution. These provisions state that articles 324 to 329 with the exception of article 328 will also be valid for Delhi. The Act deals with the establishment of a legislative assembly and a council of ministers for the NCT of Delhi. It defines pa rameters of the assembly like number of seats, reser vation for scheduled castes, duration of assembly , eligi bility criteria for members, legislative powers of the house and so on. These proS visions make Delhi differ ent from other UTs.

How is NCT of Delhi different from states?

As per Article 239AA, the legislative assembly of Delhi has no control over establishment of public order, police, officers and servants of the high court and rights over the land of the NCT. This is in contrast to the authority vested in state governments over those subjects.

Does Delhi's lieutenant governor have more legislative power than state governors?

The special provision for Delhi states that there shall be a council of ministers, with the chief minister to aid and advise the lieutenant governor. In the case of a difference the LG can refer it to the president.The LG can act according to the decision given by the president and overrule the council of ministers.

Is the recurring demand for full statehood for Delhi feasible?

Though Prime Minister Narendra Modi has maintained silence on this issue, the previous NDA government had introduced a Bill in Parliament in 2003 through the then home minister, L K Advani, to confer full statehood on Delhi. But there was no serious attempt to pass that law.

A state that is not a state

The Times of India

Feb 07 2015

Subodh Varma

Is Delhi a `State' or a `Union Territory'?bb

The Centre administers a Union territory while a state is governed by its elected government. Delhi is a bit of both. Till 1991 it was a UT with a Metropolitan Council that had limited powers. Then the 69th Amendment was passed changing the set up. Delhi's official name became National Capital Territory of Delhi with a legislative assembly to be elected by citizens, a council of ministers and a CM. The lieutenantgovernor continued as the President's appointee. But certain pow ers given to legislatures were withheld from Delhi making it a special class stateUT.Another example of this is Puducherry . The first Delhi's assembly poll under the new dispensation was in 1993, which BJP won. Congress won the three subsequent elections, and the last one in 2013 produced a hung house.

Why can't Delhi be considered a fullfledged `state'?

The 69th Amendment laid down why: Legislative powers on everything related to land and public order are with the Centre. In full states, as per the Constitution, these are with state governments.There are other differences too. The Lt Governor is not the head of state, unlike other governors. The CM and ministers are appointed by the President. Parliament has overriding powers over laws passed by the state legislature.

All Delhi land is under Delhi Development Authority control. DDA has sole power to acquire or dispose it off. DDA is under the Union urban affairs ministry . Over the years, as Delhi's population exploded and land became a key requirement for settlement, this agency acquired enormous powers.

In Delhi, since public order is not state government responsibility , the Union home ministry runs Delhi Police, one of the largest metropolitan police forces in the world.

So, that's it? Some things are run by Centre and some by state government?

It's slightly more complicated. Most civic functions like sanitation, maintenance of roads, certain taxes and tolls, infrastructure, and so on are controlled by mu nicipal corporations after the 74th Constitution Amendment of 1992. The Municipal Corpo ration of Delhi was reorgan ized with a 272-member body after the 74th Amendment.

In 1997, it was won by BJP , in 2002 by Congress and again by BJP in 2007. In 2012, it was trifurcated into North, South and East Corporations, all controlled by BJP . A large chunk of funds to the municipal corporations are provided by the state.

These civic bodies don't have jurisdiction over Lutyens Delhi where residences of ministers, MPs and the diplomatic enclave are located. This island comprising 3% of Delhi's area is run by the unelected New Delhi Municipal Council. An even smaller segment where armed services establishments and residences are located is managed by the Cantonment Board, an elected body .

Extent of Centre’s powers

The Times of India

Feb 07 2015

Ambika Pandit

Previous chief ministers of BJP, Congress and even AAP have been seen to be on the defensive and often helpless over unresolved policing, land and legislative concerns. However, as far as Delhi's finances go, it is not dependent on the Centre directly as it generates its own resources from a tax base which continues to be robust even in the absence of a state government for a year now. However, critical subjects like land, law and order, traffic and certain financial bills rest with the union government. Delhi's lack of status as a full state also means it gets just a few hundred crores from the central government under the allocation from the union budget. Thus Delhi runs the show with its own finances from revenue generated from value added tax, excise, stamp duty and transport. Central assistance was around Rs 700 crore last year. Delhi also gets its share in central schemes.

In Delhi, LG is the representative of the Centre on all matters related to policing and land. The Centre plays a key role through urban development ministry on subjects related to land managed by DDA. Regularisation of unauthorized colonies is a key concern where centre-state coordination has a critical role. As far as Delhi Police goes, it is not only under the control of the home ministry but also gets its budget from the Centre. Delhi Cantonment too is a centrally-fi nanced entity .

The first test for any government that takes charge after the polls will be to give shape to the Delhi budget for 2015-16. The budget outlay for the current fiscal 2014-15 was about Rs 36,000 crore and the outlay for the next fiscal is expected to be of the same size.

BJP has sought votes for good governance under Narendra Modi, making Delhi's development almost a Central affair. The fact that the BJP has abandoned its long-stand ing demand for full statehood this poll season indicates that the Centre will take a keen interest if a BJP-led government takes charge in Delhi. The PM himself has been addressing rallies and seeking a vote for good centrestate coordination.

While AAP's CM candidate, Arvind Kejriwal, has assured people that he would seek cooperation of the centre on subjects linked to centre-state coordination, an AAP government will face the challenge of strengthening the capital's financial base to deliver an expansive social welfare agenda. However, the past shows that on subjects of land and policing, often CMs have found themselves struggling to take decisions due to dependence on the Centre, leading to a stalemate.

During the 49 days of AAP government, one saw the centre-state row escalate over Jan Lokpal Bill with then CM, Arvind Kejriwal, refusing to refer the bill to the Centre in keeping with the provisions, arguing that there was no need for central approval. The impasse and protests by BJP and Congress over AAP's stand finally led to Kejriwal resigning from government. Sheila Dikshit as CM had also expressed helplessness on matters related to law and order. After the Nirbhaya gangrape case, the tussle between the centre and state on law and order was out in the open.The union home ministry's reluctance to remove the then police commissioner did not go down well with Dikshit.She failed to have her way though the Congress-led UPA was in power at the Centre.Similar showdowns were seen over trifurcation of the municipal corporation with the Centre reluctant to let go of its powers on municipal affairs.

2015: Council of Ministers, Delhi government

2015: Council of Ministers, The Times of India

2015: Council of Ministers, The Times of India

CM promises to consult `experienced' opposition

The Times of India

Chief Ministers of Delhi: 1952-2015

Feb 15 2015

Exactly a year after his government resigned following a tumultuous 49day stint in Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal took oath as chief minister. Far from being a man in hurry -as he clearly was last time -he pledged to serve Delhi for five years, described himself as “sabka CM“ and promised to rid the city of corruption. And for completing this “mission“, he warned his party against ahankaar (arrogance), saying they had been punished when with 28 seats in Delhi, they set out to contest across the country in last year's Lok Sabha polls.

Acutely conscious of the massive mandate given to his party by Delhi -67 out of 70 seats, which he described as a “miracle“ and “god's message“ -Kejriwal assured Delhiites that this time he was going to be around for five years.

“Since Delhi's people have given me love and they have put faith in me, for the next five years I will live in Delhi and only serve the people of the city ,“ he said. Acknowledging the contribution of every strata, community and caste in AAP's win, Kejriwal said: “People of every religion have voted for Aam Aadmi; Hindus, Muslims, Chris tians, Sikhs, Jains, all voted for AAP, people of every caste voted, the poor voted in large numbers, the rich also voted.“

Describing himself as everyone's CM, Kejriwal referred to even those who didn't vote for AAP. “We consider the MLAs of the three constituencies that we did not win our own. I have seen some parties do booth-wise analysis after the election results and identify booths that did not yield votes for that party . For us, the entire Delhi is our booth. We have to serve the entire city,“ he said.

Speaking on his resolve to eradicate corruption, he said he, too, was wracked by doubts during the Anna agitation whether India would ever become corruption-free.But AAP managed to achieve that in its 49 days in government, he said. “Last time, before forming a government, there was zest, passion and romanticism in us, a craze to remove corruption from the country , but today...we have the confidence that in five years we will be able to rid Delhi of corruption.“

Repeating his message of December 28, 2013 when he had taken oath as CM for the first time, he said if someone demanded a bribe, people shouldn't refuse to pay . They should do a “setting“, record everything and hand it over to him. He promised strict action. In this context, he announced revival of the anticorruption helpline soon.

With close aide and now deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia standing by him through his almost 30-minute long speech, Kejriwal warned his party of a fate like that of Congress or BJP if they allowed themselves to become arrogant after the stupendous performance in the Delhi election. “When one gets such a victory , one can become arrogant. And if one gets arrogant, then everything is lost,“ he said. That is why all of us have to be on guard. We will constantly have to introspect to ensure that we do not get arrogant. Already I can see some amount of arrogance has crept inside us. People voted out Congress and BJP because they had become arrogant.“

At an open air ceremony at Ramlila Maidan, an important venue for the AAP leader who not only took his first oath as CM here but also rose to prominence after his anti-corruption dharna here with Anna Hazare, Kejriwal addressed a mammoth crowd of over a lakh. In a celebration of democracy witnessed rarely in India, thousands of AAP supporters from across the country had turned up. Shouts of `Bharat mata ki jai and `paanch saal Kejriwal' reverberated in the air.

Striking a conciliatory note -he had told the PM he wanted “constructive and positive cooperation“ -Kejriwal disarmed even his political rivals by saying that the government would like to benefit from the expertise and experience of BJP and Congress CM candidates, Kiran Bedi and Ajay Maken respectively . “I respect Kiran Bediji a lot. Victory and defeat are fallouts of an elec tion. Kiranji is like my elder sister. She has experience in police and administration. We will take her along and will take her guidance from time to time,“ he said. He said Maken had a long experience in policy making and governance and his guidance would also be sought. After the ceremony , he was seen warmly hugging BJP MLA and former state BJP chief Vijender Gupta.

Leaving no one in any doubt that statehood was a priority with him, he said he told the PM: “We have a majority in Delhi and he has a majority at the Centre. If both agree that Delhi should get full statehood, then Delhi will indeed get it. I also told him that as PM, he has too much on his plate. Leave the task of running Delhi to Delhi government. He should run the country .“

The trials of the past year have evidently taught Kejriwal some important lessons, one of them being practicality . Battling controversies over his house and mode of travel within the city , largely because of the numerous promises his party had made before the previous election, Kejriwal clarified that as CM he would need an big office to meet people, a vehicle for government work and house to live in.

The CM has also promised an end to VIP culture and passing of Jan Lokpal Bill and sent out a special request to traders that while they wouldn't be hounded by government agencies, they should pay their taxes regularly .