SC restrains Pondy CM from taking financial decisions

The apex court impleaded Narayanasamy as a respondent in the application filed by the Centre and Bedi seeking a direction for restoring the situation prevailing before the April 30 Madras High Court verdict which held that the L-G “cannot interfere” in the day-to-day affairs of the elected government in the Union Territory.

The Centre and the L-G have approached the apex court challenging the High Court’s April 30 verdict.

A vacation bench comprising Justices Indu Malhotra and MR Shah issued notices to the respondents, including Narayanasamy, on the application seeking relief of “status quo ante” (situation prevailing before the High Court verdict).

During the hearing, Additional Solicitor Generals (ASGs) Aman Lekhi and ANS Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre and Bedi, told the bench that the court should consider granting the relief. They said if the situation prevailing before the High Court’s verdict was not restored, the UT administration was likely to come to a standstill.

Nadkarni placed before the bench the agenda of Cabinet meeting, scheduled on June 3 but adjourned to June 7 and said that most of the agenda items would have financial implications and if implemented, the main petitions challenging the High Court verdict would become infructuous.

Senior advocates P Chidambaram and Kapil Sibal, appearing for the petitioner on whose plea the HC had passed the verdict, said that while hearing the matter earlier, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi had not granted stay on the High Court’s verdict.

“Leave to join the Chief Minister of Puducherry as a party respondent so far as the present interlocutory application is concerned,” the bench noted in its order.

The court directed the counsel appearing for the Centre and Puducherry government to file additional affidavit with grounds, including placing on record the agenda of the Cabinet meeting to be held on June 7, within three days.