Rekha Gupta’s directive mandates MLAs and ministers to obtain prior permission from the Chief Secretary before calling District Magistrates or Sub-Divisional Magistrates for meetings
NEW DELHI — Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Chief Whip Sanjeev Jha on Thursday launched a scathing attack on Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta. During the assembly proceedings, he criticised the chief minister’s directive that mandates MLAs and ministers to obtain prior permission from the Chief Secretary before calling District Magistrates (DMs) or Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) for meetings.
Calling the order “a direct attack on democracy” and “contempt of the House,” the legislator from Burari in Delhi’s Central district Jha said it was essentially a licence for the bureaucracy to ignore elected representatives and obstruct governance.
“This is not just an issue for the Opposition or the ruling party — even ministers are affected,” Jha said during the monsoon session of the Delhi Assembly. “The order empowers officials to ignore us. If the executive starts controlling the legislature in this manner, the very foundation of democracy collapses.”
Jha informed the House that he had submitted a privilege notice against the chief minister’s order and urged the Speaker to take immediate action. “Only the Speaker can protect the dignity of this House,” he said. “This directive is an affront to the legislature, and therefore also to the Chair.”
He argued that such a policy undermines the authority of the elected legislature and diminishes the constitutional principle that the people, through their representatives, are sovereign.
“Any attempt to reduce the powers of elected representatives is an insult to the Constitution itself,” he said.
According to Jha, the chief minister’s order has already had a chilling effect. “The DM is not answering my calls. This order gives them an official excuse,” he alleged. “The bureaucracy already looks for reasons to avoid engaging with MLAs. This has now become a shield for non-cooperation.”
The MLA reiterated that this kind of gatekeeping by the bureaucracy, legitimised through the chief minister’s directive, would cripple coordination on public service delivery, especially at the local level.
Slamming Rekha Gupta’s move as authoritarian, Jha said, “When elected ministers themselves are being asked to route communication through the Chief Secretary, it is a blatant display of bureaucratic overreach. It’s unheard of.”
Jha urged all members of the House, cutting across party lines, to oppose the move:
“Whether you are in government or opposition, you are an elected representative. We cannot allow unelected officials to control how and when we speak to them.”
He further reminded the House of its constitutional role: “It is not the bureaucracy but the people who are supreme in a democracy. And we, the elected representatives, are answerable to them.”
Jha concluded by demanding the immediate withdrawal of the directive. “This is an unacceptable attempt to muzzle elected voices and reduce them to spectators in governance. The government must reverse this order without delay,” he added.
