New Delhi: Indicating a resolution to the long-standing legal disputes between the Lieutenant Governor (LG) and the Delhi government, the newly formed BJP-led administration in the national capital has begun withdrawing multiple court cases, sources revealed on Wednesday.
These cases pertain to key issues such as the appointment of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chairman, financial allocations for the Delhi Jal Board, selection of lawyers for Delhi riots cases, foreign training for teachers, and the formation of a high-level committee on Yamuna pollution.
During the tenure of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), frequent confrontations between the Delhi government and successive Lieutenant Governors—Najeeb Jung, Anil Baijal, and VK Saxena—resulted in several legal battles.
The AAP government, led initially by Arvind Kejriwal and later by Atishi, often accused the LG of obstructing its policies, while the LG’s office countered these allegations, citing a lack of cooperation from the AAP.
The ongoing power struggle with the LG is considered one of the reasons behind AAP’s significant electoral setback in the recent Delhi Assembly elections.
The party’s representation in the 70-member Assembly was reduced to just 22 seats, while the BJP secured 48 seats, marking its return to power in Delhi after more than 25 years.
The new administration is now led by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.
A major point of contention between the AAP government and the LG was the appointment of the DERC chairman.
The AAP argued that allowing the Centre to control this regulatory body might jeopardize its widely appreciated power subsidy scheme.
Similarly, in 2020, the then-LG Anil Baijal faced criticism from AAP over the appointment of public prosecutors for the Northeast Delhi riots cases.
AAP MP Sanjay Singh had alleged that the Centre was imposing its own selection of special public prosecutors despite concerns over Delhi Police’s handling of the investigation.
The conflict extended to the AAP’s proposal to send teachers abroad for training, particularly to Finland.
The party took legal action against the LG’s decision to impose conditions on the initiative.
In the Supreme Court, senior advocate AM Singhvi, representing the Delhi government, argued that the LG was influencing key decisions regarding teacher training, while the LG’s counsel countered that the Kejriwal administration had failed to provide impact assessment reports for past training programs.
Sources within the Delhi government confirmed that these and other legal cases will be withdrawn to ease tensions between the administration, the LG’s office, and the Centre. “The focus will now be on governance,” a source stated.