A thorny issue for BJP and AAP

Ongoing demand for full statehood for Delhi has been a thorny issue between the AAP and the Opposition BJP. The full statehood demand was a part of the AAP manifesto, but the BJP that had been raising the issue for years chose to remain silent on it ahead of the Assembly polls last year.

The grant of full statehood to Delhi has also been a common demand of both the BJP and the Congress, so the AAP government is hopeful that it would be able to get support on the contentious matter from both the political outfits.

However, BJP MLA Vijender Gupta said on Wednesday only Parliament was empowered to prepare, adopt and pass the Delhi Statehood Bill as enshrined in the Constitution. “Delhi Legislative Assembly is not empowered to prepare and adopt the bill as it is a constitutional bill. This proposal is mischievous and unacceptable because it bifurcates Delhi into two parts. New Delhi Municipal Council will be the capital of India with a separate and independent entity. The present non-NDMC area will be Delhi state without the tag of capital city.”

Earlier, Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken had said the vexed question on statehood and the extent of powers to be passed on to the Delhi government have been debated at the highest level all through the last century five times since 1912. “The Indian Constitution drafting committee under Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar had also put Delhi under Part C states without subjects of law and order, local self-governing institutions, the Improvement Trust (1937) (previous avatar of DDA) and other statutory boards regulating certain public utility services in Delhi and New Delhi,” Mr Maken said.

Delhi’s first constitutional status after Independence was that of a state. Former Delhi Assembly secretary S.K. Sharma said the Assembly and the council of ministers were abolished in 1956, following which the city became a Union Territory under the direct administration of the President. He said in the current system, power is divided between the chief minister and the Central government through the L-G and this dual control was primarily responsible for the inherent tension between the two power centres.

According to experts, the lacuna in the jurisdiction of the national capital’s government is the reason why Delhi is not being considered a state despite having its own Assembly. The stalemate has remained unresolved despite different models available in other capitals.

Unlike its counterparts in states, the Delhi Assembly is barred by Article 239AA(3)(a) of the Constitution from making laws on three of the 66 state list entries.