New Delhi: The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the much-debated National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023 that gives the Centre control over the capital’s bureaucrats.
The government had on Tuesday tabled the Bill to replace the Delhi services ordinance, which was vociferously contested by the Opposition and became a rallying plank for the newly-formed INDIA bloc.
The Bill seeks to create the National Capital Civil Services Authority (NCCSA) to decide on the transfer and posting of civil servants.
The Centre issued the ordinance a week after the Supreme Court on 11 May gave Delhi’s elected government power over its bureaucrats, except those in land, police and law and order.
The NCCSA will consist of Delhi’s chief minister, chief secretary and the principal home secretary, but gives the Lieutenant Governor — who reports to the Centre — the final say in matters.
Initiating discussion on the Bill in the afternoon, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the BJP and the Congress had previously ruled the national capital without any confrontation, but problems arose only in 2015 when “a party (read Delhi’s ruling AAP) came to power which had no intention of serving the people but only to fight with the Centre”.
Shah added that the Delhi government wanted control of the vigilance department “to hide corruption like building their bungalows”. Incidentally, the BJP has charged Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of spending Rs 45 crore to renovate his government bungalow amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
On accusations that the ordinance had circumvented the apex court order, Shah said: “There are provisions in the Constitution that allow the Centre to make laws for Delhi.”
Shah also slammed the INDIA bloc for supporting the AAP on the issue, asking them not to merely think about their alliance, but also about Delhi and the country.
#WATCH | Union Home Minister Amit Shah says, "The opposition's priority is to save their alliance. The opposition is not worried about Manipur…Everyone is talking about the rights of a state. But which state? Delhi is not a state but a Union Territory…The Parliament has the… pic.twitter.com/9ivxALDKfB
— ANI (@ANI) August 3, 2023
After hearing Shah’s speech in Parliament, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the Bill would enslave the people of Delhi.
He said in a tweet: “Today I heard Amit Shah ji speak in Lok Sabha on the Bill which snatches away the rights of the people of Delhi. They do not have a single valid argument to support the Bill… They also know that they are doing wrong. This Bill will enslave the people of Delhi. This is a Bill that makes them helpless. INDIA will never let this happen.”
The AAP-led Delhi government has been at loggerheads with the Centre over the control of Group-A officers in the National Capital Territory administration.