National
Constitution doesn’t envisage Delhi as a state, Centre tells SC
New Delhi, Nov 21 (IANS) The Centre on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that Delhi can never be considered as a State as the Indian Constitution never envisaged such a status for it and doing so would lead to an “inevitable chaos”.
“What is not provided in the Constitution specifically can’t be conferred on the Union Territory of Delhi by mere interpretation of the Constitution,” Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh told a five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra.
The ASG also told the bench, also comprising Justices A.K. Sikri, A.M. Khanwilkar, D.Y. Chandrachud, and Ashok Bhushan, that none of the senior counsel for the Delhi government argued that Delhi was a state but sought the status by way of interpretation of the constitutional provisions.
“The status of (Delhi as a) State is not sought on the text and context of the Constitution but by its interpretation by the court (by) citing principles, Westminster model and accountability,” Maninder Singh, appearing for the Centre, told the bench while rebutting Delhi government’s arguments on the matter.
“If you have to treat a Union Territory as a State, then the Constitution must provide for it or say so. Unless there is a specific mention, you can’t read State into it. It will result in inevitable chaos,” the ASG told the bench.
“The demand is that I am not a State but treat me as a State.”
Senior counsel Rajiv Dhavan reminded Singh that at no stage had any one of them, who appeared for the Delhi government, argued that Delhi was a State.
Except for senior counsel Shekhar Naphade, none of the four senior counsel — Gopal Subramanium, P. Chidambaram, Indira Jaising, and Rajeev Dhavan — said that Delhi was a State.
In fact, Gopal Subramanium commenced his arguments by saying that Delhi is a Union territory and not a State and they were not seeking the statehood for the national capital.
Maninder Singh told the bench that whichever way one may look at Article 239AA — the special provision under which Delhi was conferred a legislative assembly — as an overall scheme of constitutional set-up or even as a standalone provision, statehood can’t be read into the Delhi set-up.
The bench is hearing a batch of petitions by the Delhi government to challenge a Delhi High Court order that held that the Lt Governor had the final authority in the governance of the national capital.
Defending the High Court verdict, the ASG referred to the 1987 committee set up by the Centre to examine the demand of statehood for Delhi by various political parties.
The ASG said the committee had expressly rejected the full statehood demand by saying that only such of these powers, which the democratically elected councillors can exercise, can be vested in the Union Territory of Delhi.
Denying that the Lt Governor was sitting on lakhs of files, thereby paralysing the functioning of the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi, Maninder Singh said the Lt Governor had called for 650 files in three years and of these only three files relating to police, that fell in the domain of the Centre, were sent to the President.
The ASG will continue his arguments on Wednesday.
–IANS
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Lucknow: Vishal Singh, a renowned social worker from Lucknow, also known as Foodman, has once again made India proud. He was honored by the Happy Hands Gloves Cooperative Limited Company in Korathai, Thailand, for his work with the Hunger Free World Mission.
The Hunger Free World Mission’s meeting was held in Korathai, Thailand, under Vishal Singh’s leadership. Representatives from several countries, including Mr. Raja Dwivedi (Managing Director of Happy Hands Gloves Limited), Thailand Coordinator Mr. Raja Mishra, and member Mr. Varun Singh, attended the event.
Under Vishal Singh’s leadership, the attendees took a pledge to work together toward creating a hunger-free world.
Speaking on the occasion, Vishal Singh explained that the main goal of the Hunger Free World Mission is social participation. He said the mission is not just about feeding people but also about meeting other basic needs of those who are struggling. The mission focuses on helping families of terminally ill patients in hospitals by providing food and shelter. It also works to fulfill essential needs like education, jobs, and care for the elderly.
For the last 16 years, the Vijay Sri Foundation has been providing free services, benefiting thousands of people. Vishal Singh highlighted that the mission aims to gain global recognition like other organizations such as WHO, WWF, and Red Cross, which work for social causes.
During this meeting, Vishal Singh was appointed as the Chairman of the Hunger Free World Mission by representatives from various countries. They also discussed holding regular meetings in different countries to push the mission forward.
Business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has also supported this humanitarian mission, vowing to promote the idea of “Seva Parmo Dharma” (Service is the highest duty) worldwide. Vishal Singh praised him, stating that people like Dr .Abhishek Verma inspire others to work for the betterment of society.
Recently, Romania’s Ambassador, Mr . Daniela Sezonov Ţane, invited Vishal Singh to the Romanian Embassy in Delhi, where they discussed the mission in detail. Impressed by his humanitarian work, she honored Vishal Singh and invited him to Romania to take the mission forward .
Food man Vishal Singh has been serving the people of India for the past 16 years. Through the Vijay Sri Foundation, he provides free meals to cancer patients & their families ,shelter, and education for women & children along with running free old-age homes in Lucknow.
In addition to his humanitarian work, Vishal Singh also addresses issues like crime and corruption through his role as Chairman of Seva Path Media and Managing Director of Vijay Sri Foundation.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vishal Singh and his team worked tirelessly to provide food and help to the needy, including starving children, elderly citizens, and pregnant women. Despite contracting the virus himself, he continued to assist others after his recovery. He even created a life-saving oxygen regulator using household items, which was praised by doctors both in India and abroad.
In his address at the meeting, Vishal Singh spoke about his mission to create a hunger-free world. He pointed out that India’s large population, along with issues like unemployment and poverty, has caused the country to fall on the Hunger Index. He urged people to contribute just one handful of grains daily to help create a hunger-free world.
He concluded by saying that through social participation, we can empower the people around us, meet their basic needs, and work together to build a stronger, more prosperous, and developed society.
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