MHA refers matter to Admn for comments
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, June 15
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has referred the issue of restoring the post of Chief Commissioner in Chandigarh to the UT division in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The MHA has further referred the matter to the Chandigarh Administration for comments.
The issue of reverting back to the system of Chief Commissioner from the current system of appointing the UT Administrator surfaced after the matter was referred to the PMO by a local activist, Ajay Jagga, who pointed out that since the Chandigarh Disturbed Areas Act, 1983, and the Armed Forces (Punjab and Chandigarh) Special Powers Act were no more in existence, there was no relevance of the having the post of Administrator.
According to the original structure, the practice of appointing a senior bureaucrat from the Centre as Chief Commissioner of the UT continued till May 31, 1984. Thereafter, the Governor of Punjab was made the Administrator. The change in the administrative structure was brought due to disturbances in Punjab and Chandigarh. Under the Chandigarh Disturbed Areas Act and the Armed Forces (Punjab and Chandigarh) Special Powers Act, the UT was brought under the control of the Punjab Governor.
In 1997, the special powers Act was repealed and in 2011, the Punjab and Haryana High Court quashed the notification of disturbed area.
“The city needs a head who is accountable, responsible and transparent. In the present set-up, the Governor of Punjab is the Administrator of UT, who is not accountable, not responsible, not transparent and not even accessible easily,” Jagga has pointed out.
Issue was raised in 2009 too
In 2009, the MHA had made an attempt to revert to the old system of Chief Commissioner on the expiry of the term of the then Governor of Punjab, Gen SF Rodrigues (retd). However, the plan did not materialise and Shivraj Patil was made the Governor. Patil’s term ended in January 2015. The then Union Secretary, GK Pillai, was quoted as saying, “We have decided that after the Punjab Governor’s tenure ends, Chandigarh shall no longer be governed by the Punjab Governor. Instead, there will be a Chief Commissioner.”
Leaderspeak
Whether it is UT Administrator or Chief Commissioner, the person has to have a correct attitude as residents’ grievances have to be redressed. It is a larger issue which needs to be revisited before arriving at a consensus. —Kirron Kher, MP, Chandigarh
Instead of an Administrator or Chief Commissioner, there should be a metropolitan council so that elected representatives have more say in decision-making. —Pradeep Chhabra, CTCC Chief
