The Rajya Sabha passed the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023 late on Monday. The Bill, which was aimed to replace the ordinance on transfers and postings of senior officers in the Delhi government was passed with 131 votes for and 102 votes against. Replying to the debate on the contentious bill in Rajya Sabha, Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, asserted that the bill in no way violates the Supreme Court’s judgement. The Home Minister said the Bill is aimed at “effective, corruption-free governance” in the national capital. He also assured the members that there is not even a single provision that changes the status of the system prevailing since the Congress regime.
The Minister defended the ordinance, alleging the AAP-led Delhi government transferred officers of the Vigilance Department as it had files on the liquor scam. “So much haste was shown concerning the vigilance department by Delhi government because it had files related to ‘excise policy scam’ and ‘sheesh-mahal’,” he said. Taking a swipe at Congress for joining hands with the Aap Aadmi Party (AAP), Shah said AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal will quit the opposition bloc INDIA once the Delhi services Bill is passed. “The Bill has not been brought to impose ‘Emergency’ or take away the rights of people,” the Home Minister said.
“Earlier, there were no fights over transfer postings in Delhi, no CMs had any problems…In 2015, a govt came up after an ‘Andolan’…Some people said that the Centre wants to take power into its hands. The Centre doesn’t need to do so as the people of India have given us the power and the right,” Shah said.
Earlier in the day, AAP MP Raghav Chadha said the Bill was a “political fraud, constitutional sin and will create an administrative logjam”. Chadha said that the BJP had been demanding statehood for Delhi for almost 40 years and promised the same in its election manifesto. The AAP leader said that the BJP has destroyed the 40 years of hard work of its leaders like Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishan Advani to make Delhi a full state.
Taking potshots at Home Minister Shah Chadha said the BJP leader should become “Adavanivadi” and not “Nehruvadi”.
Some members, including BJD MP Sasmit Patra and BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi, said their names were included in the motion moved by AAP MP Raghav Chadha without their consent. “Now it is a matter of investigation how the motion was signed,” Shah said. Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh said that a probe will be ordered into complaints of some Rajya Sabha MPs on the inclusion of their names without consent. The GNCT (Amendment) Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha last week.
Who said what
“The bill doesn’t violate the Supreme Court order…The aim is to make sure corruption-free administration in Delhi.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah
“In the House today, parliamentary democracy compels House members to vote according to the party dictates…it’s a small section of people to whom you appeal to their conscience. To me the bill is correct, right. ”
MP and former CJI Ranjan Gogoi
“The Prime Minister had promised to make Delhi a full state. Today, he stabbed the people of Delhi in the back…their only motive is to stop me.”
AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal
“[The Delhi Services Bill] is a political fraud, a constitutional sin and will create an administrative logjam…the most undemocratic, unconstitutional, and illegal legislation ever presented in the House.”
AAP MP Raghav Chadha
