While the BJP councillors have termed the reports of the Aam Aadmi Party Government’s plan to takeover the cash-strapped East Delhi Municipal Corporation as ‘political gimmick’, experts said it will be ‘impossible’ to implement.
On Tuesday, Delhi Government officials had said Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was planning to ask Lieutenant-Governor to push for the State Government taking over the financially “sick” municipality.
However, senior councillors in the BJP-led corporations said this was an ‘unrealistic’ demand. As per Section 490 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, the civic body can be dissolved by the Centre for non-performance, or abuse of power.
Subhash Arya, the chairperson of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation’s Standing Committee, said the erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi has been dissolved twice in the past — once in 1978 and once earlier.
“The corporation can be dissolved if there is financial mismanagement, but it has to be done by the Union Government. The Delhi Government doesn’t have the power to decide. This is a mere gimmick by the AAP,” said Mr. Arya.
However, the DMC Act allows the Centre to appoint an “officer or authority” to carry out the corporation’s duties while it is dissolved and fresh elections are held within six months.
Former Delhi Chief Secretary Omesh Saigal said the Act does not have any provision for the corporation to be handed over to the State Government.
“The Centre can delegate the responsibility of running the civic body to an officer or to the Lieutenant-Governor, but not to the Delhi Government of the Chief Minister,” explained Mr. Saigal.
Since the Act was promulgated by Parliament in 1957, an amendment giving control over the corporation to the Delhi Government would require support of the BJP. The party controls the three municipal corporations, and councillors said the Centre won’t allow such an amendment.
The Chief Minister’s plan comes in the wake of municipal leaders asking the Delhi Government for financial aid. Mr. Kejriwal had remarked in the Assembly that if the BJP cannot run the civic bodies, they should hand over the responsibility to his government.
Municipal councillors and leaders had taken exception to that statement, even holding a protest against the government outside the Delhi Assembly last month. EDMC Mayor Meenakshi said the Delhi Government had ignored the corporation’s needs and was refusing to give it its share of taxes and grants.
