New Delhi [India], January 14 (ANI): A petition has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking directions to the Central Government, Lt. Governor, and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to exercise their constitutional and statutory powers to publish the CAG reports on their respective portals.
The petition urged that the reports be made accessible to the public, enabling them to be fully informed about the state of Delhi’s finances before casting their votes in the upcoming elections.
The Petitioner Brij Mohan, a retired Civil Servant sought directions to make the CAG reports public on their portal, even if the Speaker fails to convene a sitting of the Delhi Assembly to table them.
The court has asked the CAG to clarify its position on why the reports cannot be made accessible to the public. The petitioner is a retired Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) officer in 2013 from the Indian Audit & Accounts Department (IA&AD).
However, the court has sought the opinion of the CAG on whether its reports can be made public without being tabled before the Assembly. The matter is now scheduled for a hearing on January 24.
The petition argued that there is a fundamental “right to know” under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India, and asserts that withholding the CAG reports, which are critical for Delhi voters, constitutes “fraud on the Constitution.” It further emphasizes the necessity for the public to be informed about the financial state of Delhi before casting their votes.
The plea stated that regardless of the legislative process for tabling the CAG reports in the Delhi Vidhan Sabha, the voters of Delhi have a right to access the contents of these reports before casting their votes in the upcoming Assembly elections.
It further argued that the efficacy of the constitutional institution of the CAG should not be undermined by administrative or political efforts to suppress these reports. The petition emphasized that withholding the CAG reports, especially when they contain crucial information for Delhi voters, constitutes a “fraud on the Constitution.” (ANI)
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