SDMC asks officials not to answer Delhi assembly panel's questions

The move is likely to set a stage of confrontation between the Delhi Assembly and the SDMC ahead of municipal polls scheduled later this year.A proposal in this connection, which was moved by SDMCs Leader of the House Inderjeet Sehrawat, was approved by the standing committee of the civic body on Friday.Sehrawat said that the privilege committee of the Delhi Assembly had sought answers of several starred and unstarred questions asked during the Assembly session conducted on January 3 and 4.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) on Friday asked its officials ''not to answer'' questions of the Delhi Assembly's privilege committee as the municipality claimed that ''it interferes in the day-to-day functioning of the civic body''. The move is likely to set a stage of confrontation between the Delhi Assembly and the SDMC ahead of municipal polls scheduled later this year.

A proposal in this connection, which was moved by SDMC's Leader of the House Inderjeet Sehrawat, was approved by the standing committee of the civic body on Friday.

Sehrawat said that the privilege committee of the Delhi Assembly had sought answers of several starred and unstarred questions asked during the Assembly session conducted on January 3 and 4. He said that the civic body had provided replies along with documents to all these questions but the privilege committee termed them unsatisfactory and incomplete, which he said is a lie. ''By doing these tactics, Assembly committees are just harassing the SDMC officials and interfering in the day-to-day functioning of the civic body. Many questions are irrelevant and not in the interest of the public. ''Hence a proposal was moved to direct municipal officials not to answer such question which interfere in day-to-day functioning of the SDMC. The proposal was passed by the standing committee meeting on Friday,'' Sehrawat told PTI.

The proposal passed by the SDMC said that most of the information being sought has nothing to do with public interest but they are in the nature of ''questioning administrative decisions'' which were taken with due approval of competent authorities under the DMC Act, 1957.

The information now being solicited is not only voluminous but also does not serve any public interest, though it amounts to ''interfere in day-to-day administrative functioning'' of the SDMC, Sehrawat alleged in the proposal.

''Since information/inquiry solicited by the privilege committee are basically to interfere in day-to-day administrative functioning of Municipal Govt of Delhi... Therefore, commissioner SDMC and officers working under him be directing refrained from giving such information,'' the proposal stated. All the three municipalities, North, South and East, will undergo polls before May this year. The poll schedule in this connection is yet to be announced. All these three civic bodies are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), while Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is the principal opposition there.

Standing Committee Chairperson BK Oberoi said that the proposal has been passed by the civic body. ''Now as per the proposal, the officials have been directed not to answer questions which aim to interfere with the function of the SDMC,'' Oberoi said.

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