New Delhi: After the Delhi govenament and the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) were unable to agree on a name, the Supreme Court nominated former Delhi High Court judge Justice Jayant Nath as pro-tem head of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) on Friday, August 4, 2023.
A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said the Lieutenant Governor and the Chief Minister in consultation with Justice Nath would notify his honorarium.
The court was compelled to intervene as the DERC had remained headless for months due to a deadlock between the Lieutenant Governor and the Delhi government over the appointment.
The Bench clarified that the person it nominated would only discharge the functions of a DERC chairperson on an ad hoc basis.
The Delhi government approached the top court, represented by prominent solicitors A.M. Singhvi and Shadan Farasat, and accused the L-G of delaying the nomination of the DERC head for several months before appointing his own choice as the DERC head.
On July 4, the Supreme Court had stepped in to defer the swearing-in of former Allahabad High Court judge, Justice Umesh Kumar, as DERC chairperson.
The Delhi government had also separately challenged the validity of a Central ordinance giving the L-G power over civil services and appointments in tribunals and commissions.
The Supreme Court has referred the challenge to the ordinance to a Constitution Bench.
The court had earlier urged the L-G and the Delhi Chief Minister to rise above their “political bickering” and sit together to reach a consensus on a name for DERC chairperson. However, this proved unsuccessful.
