A petition has been filed in the Delhi High Court calling for the Central Government, Lt. Governor, and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) to publish their reports on public portals, ensuring that they are accessible to the public prior to the upcoming Delhi Assembly Elections.
The petition, filed by Brij Mohan, a retired Civil Servant, urges that the CAG reports be made available to the public, allowing voters to be fully informed about the financial condition of Delhi before casting their votes. Mohan has requested the court to direct that these reports be made accessible, even if the Delhi Assembly Speaker does not convene a sitting to table them.
The court has asked the CAG to explain why the reports cannot be made available to the public before being tabled in the Assembly. The petitioner, who retired as a Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) officer from the Indian Audit & Accounts Department (IA&AD) in 2013, argues that there is a constitutional “right to know” under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India, which guarantees freedom of speech and expression, including the right to information.
The petition contends that withholding the CAG reports, which are crucial for informing Delhi voters about the state of finances, amounts to a “fraud on the Constitution.” It emphasizes that, regardless of whether the reports are tabled in the Delhi Vidhan Sabha, the public should have access to them ahead of the elections.
The petition further argues that any attempt to suppress these reports undermines the efficacy of the CAG as a constitutional institution. The court has requested the CAG’s opinion on whether its reports can be made public without being tabled before the Assembly. The matter is scheduled for a hearing on January 24.
