L-G’s office approaches HC for intervention in pleas challenging scrapped Delhi excise policy

L-G V K Saxena’s office has approached the Delhi High Court seeking intervention in pleas challenging the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy on the ground that correct facts were not presented in the proceedings leading to creation of a false picture of the office.

The intervention application came up for hearing before Justice Subramonium Prasad on March 5 and the court listed it with the main matter on March 20.

The plea said the L-G’s office was constrained to file the intervention application on account of the “repeated incorrect statements being made by the counsels for the GNCTD, who wrongly and falsely attributed the delay” in submission of a court directed report on the opening of liquor vends in conforming and non-conforming wards while implementing the now-rescinded excise policy in Delhi, to the L-G for over a year and a half.

The application stated that on March 29, 2022, the high court had asked the LG to consider constituting a committee with an intent to lend a quietus to the controversy and the panel was formed on April 6, 2022 and according to the understanding of the applicant, the report was prepared and submitted on August 18, 2022.

On the same day, the excise department sought the L-G’s approval for placing it before the court.

“However, thereafter the applicant understands that the committee’s report dated August 18, 2022 was being kept pending approval before various departments of the GNCT of Delhi, and finally reached the applicant only on January 16, 2024, after about 16 months,” the application which bears the name of Ashish Kundra, principal secretary to the LG, said.

“The facts above reflect a distressing plight, where the GNCT of Delhi refuses to take responsibility for its own lapses and omissions. What is even more concerning is the manner in which the responsibility is falsely attributed to a constitutional authority with no regard for accountability of one’s actions.

“It is respectfully stated that this is not only an affront to a constitutional post and the person, who is an eo nominee of the President of India, but also unduly erodes the credibility of the person holding such a post, and his body of work,” it said.

Earlier, Raj Niwas officials had said the proposal of the Excise Commissioner to submit the report of the committee — set up on the orders of the Delhi High Court regarding conforming and non-conforming wards — to the court was moved for L-G’s approval on August 18, 2022.

However, it was stalled by the then minister twice, officials had said.

“All this while the government kept telling on record in HC, that the report was pending with L-G. It prompted the court to request the L-G thrice to clear the file for submission of the report expeditiously,

despite the fact that the file was not with L-G. “The proposal was cleared by Atishi (Delhi minister) who sent it for further recommendation to Chief

Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who cleared it on January 16 this year and sent it to L-G,” an official had said.