Rationing Delhi’s powers
The Delhi government of Arvind Kejriwal has been trying to put in place the delivery of rations at the doorstep of about 17.8 lakh ration card holders with about 72 lakh beneficiaries. It is being manacled by the Centre which is putting spokes in the wheel of what appears to be a good scheme that may not only reduce the role of the ‘ration mafia’ in distorting the distribution chain for illegal gains but also lessen the chances of 2,000 PDS shops acting as spreaders of Covid-19. In a long running battle to launch the scheme, the Delhi government also offered to drop the “Mukhyamantri Ghar Ghar Ration Yojana” from the scheme’s title, but to no avail.
In the normal scheme of things, Kejriwal may be the most attritional of chief ministers with a penchant for demonstrativeness despite being the duly elected executive. The problem has been exacerbated in the passing of the Government Of National Capital Territory Of Delhi (Amendment) Act 2021. The Centre, through the good offices of a pliant Lt. Governor, has arrogated even more powers than would devolve in governance of the capital territory with its security implications as the seat of the Union government. The ration scheme may seem logical enough but it was bound not to have a smooth passage because an elected Delhi government’s powers have been eroded thus.
In a divided state of affairs stemming from a rancorous sharing of power, the government led by a chief minister and the Lt. Governor answerable to the Centre have always been at odds. But then all this is only part of a larger manifestation of the problems of political power play seen in territories from Delhi to Lakshwadeep and also Puducherry where a popular mandate is yet to lead to the formation of a Cabinet more than a month after the declaration of election results. At no time has the administration of the NCT and Union Territories been so fraught as now. This is so because the traditional sharing of power in a federal structure is being stretched by a lust for power for its own sake.
The Centre, through the good offices of a pliant Lt. Governor, has arrogated even more powers than would devolve in governance of the capital territory with its security implications as the seat of the Union government.