New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI) – The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed the urgency of a plea seeking the public release of 14 Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports on city administration, declining to hear the matter before the upcoming assembly elections on February 5.
A bench comprising Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela deferred the hearing to March 5 despite the petitioner's counsel urging an expedited hearing, citing the impending polls. "Day after is elections doesn't make the matter urgent," the bench remarked.
The plea was brought forward by Brij Mohan, a retired civil servant, who argued that voters in Delhi must be informed about the state’s financial health and governance before casting their votes. The reports reportedly contain critical observations on the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government's policies, including its now-scrapped excise policy, which allegedly led to losses for the exchequer.
However, the Delhi government’s counsel argued that the matter would become irrelevant once the elections conclude. The court maintained that the case had no direct connection with the elections and refused to expedite the hearing.
The court also questioned the petitioner's right to demand the publication of the CAG reports, raising the legal debate on whether such reports qualify as "information" under the Right to Information (RTI) Act before being tabled in the legislative assembly. The bench acknowledged the significance of the issue, stating that a citizen's attempt to access such reports confronted constitutional provisions.
Mohan’s plea emphasized that beyond the immediate assembly elections, the CAG reports should be in the public domain ahead of the 2025 general elections in Delhi. The petition claimed that the delay in making the reports public suggested reluctance from the Delhi government, despite public interest demanding transparency in governance.
The matter will now be taken up on March 5, well after the conclusion of the assembly polls.
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