NEW DELHI: Upping the ante in the appointments row, the AAP government has decided to hold a two-day “emergency” session of the Assembly. On Saturday, the AAP government took a call that the Delhi Assembly session will be called from Tuesday to deliberate on the Centre’s notification giving absolute powers to the Lieutenant-Governor in the appointment of bureaucrats and issues of police and public order.
The decision to hold the special Session was taken at a Cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The Assembly was due to meet in June for the passage of the Budget. Officials said the Session will deliberate on the gazette notification issued by the Centre as well as issues relating to sharing of power between the elected government and Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung.
Officials said the government had sought legal opinion from constitutional expert K.K. Venugopal and former solicitor-general Gopal Subramanium and both felt that the notification is against the provisions in the Constitution and laid-down norms. In the notification issued, the Centre gave absolute powers to the L-G in the appointment of bureaucrats while also clarifying that he need not "consult" the chief minister on subjects like police and public order.
