Ex-HC judge Justice Jayant Nath appointed interim head of DERC

New Delhi: With the Delhi government and the Lieutenant Governor feuding over who should head the city’s power regulator, the Supreme Court on Friday appointed former Delhi High Court judge Justice Jayant Nath as the interim chairperson of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC).

A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) and the Chief Minister of Delhi shall notify the honorarium payable to Justice (retd) Nath after due consultation with him (the appointee).

The bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, noted the counsel representing the Delhi government and the office of L-G have jointly requested it to nominate a former judge to discharge the duty of the chairperson of the DERC.

“Accordingly, we request Justice Jayant Nath, a former judge of the High Court of Delhi, to discharge the duties of the office of chairperson of DERC,” the bench said. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government led by Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi L-G V K Saxena were at loggerheads over the appointment of DERC chairperson and failed to resolve their differences despite the apex court’s prodding.

During the hearing, senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the Delhi government, said it would be fair if the apex court does not reveal the names forwarded by the either side and appoint a person to the post.

“Please pick up anybody your lordships like,” Singhvi said. The counsel appearing for the L-G office agreed to it.

“The only thing is, since this is a pro-tem appointment, the remuneration of the person we are nominating, should we say should be fixed in consultation with the LG,” the CJI said.

“I am hopelessly outdated on fees now. You will all start laughing. The juniors will start laughing in the court if I fix fees for somebody,” Justice Chandrachud said in a lighter vein.

Singhvi said when the apex court says anything about either the L-G or the chief minister, it creates an “insignia of authority or legitimacy”.

“Since the judge, after demitting office from the High Court of Delhi, is also engaged in other works including arbitration, and having regard to the nature of the present assignment which shall be pro-tem, the Lieutenant Governor and the Chief Minister of Delhi shall notify the honorarium payable after due consultation with Justice Jayant Nath,” the bench said.

The CJI observed Justice Nath is a “very dispassionate judge and professional” and he would be above all controversy.

The post of the DERC chairperson fell vacant after Justice Shabihul Hasnain demitted office on January 9, 2023.

While hearing the matter on July 20, the apex court had said it would appoint a DERC chairperson for a brief period on an ad-hoc basis pending a decision on the Delhi government’s plea contesting the lieutenant governor’s power to make such an appointment.