Delhi Services Bill 'political fraud', 'constitutional sin' aimed at taking away powers of elected govt: AAP MP

The Delhi Services Bill is a 'political fraud' and 'constitutional sin' aimed at taking away the powers of an elected government in the national capital, AAP leader Raghav Chadha said in Rajya Sabha on Monday.

Participating in a discussion on the National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, Chadha termed it 'the most anti-constitutional, illegal, undemocratic legislation ever presented' in the House.

'I am starting today not representing two crore people of Delhi but 135 crore people of this country,' he said.

Invoking the Mahabharata, he said his party seeks justice in the House.

The Bill will replace an ordinance promulgated by the Centre for handling the transfers and postings of officials in the Delhi government.

Calling the Bill a 'political fraud' and one which would lead to an administrative logjam, he noted that it is against the spirit of federalism and encroaches on the rights of the states.

Chadha said it was the BJP which fought hard to get statehood for Delhi from 1977 to 2015.

He also cited the BJP's election manifestos demanding statehood for Delhi.

'This Bill is an insult not only to democracy and the Constitution but also to (BJP leaders) Lal Krishna Advani, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Madan Lal Khurana, Sushma Swaraj and their 40 years of struggle,' Chadha said.

The real reason for bringing this Bill is that the BJP has lost six elections in Delhi in the last 25 years, he said.

'They know that they won't be able to win in the next 25 years as well. So they are trying to destroy the state government,' Chadha said.

He noted that the Bill is an abuse of the power to promulgate an ordinance granted under Article 123 of the Constitution.

'What extreme situation has come that the government had to overturn a Supreme Court order in just eight days?' Chadha said.

He said the Bill insults the Supreme Court of India.

The ordinance was promulgated by the central government on May 19, a week after the Supreme Court handed over the control of services in Delhi excluding police, public order and land to the elected government, headed by Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party.

Chadha stated that the Bill takes away the powers of the duly elected government.

He said the Bill also undermines the principles of collective responsibility.

The Bill also ditches the principle of a triple chain of authority and accountability, the AAP leader stated.

He said the Bill gives powers to the lieutenant governor for postings and transfers in Delhi.

'If in Delhi someone is not getting electricity, water, or someone's child is not getting admission in school, will the person go to the Lt Governor and not reach out to his minister, chief minister? Do people know where the Lt Governor lives, from which assembly he represents, from where he has won the election,' Chadha said.

All the powers from an elected government have been given to the Lt Governor, he stated.

The Bill symbolises the dominance of non-elected officials over the elected ones, he added.

Chadha appealed to the non-NDA parties to support AAP in the House against the Bill.