The Supreme Court on November 29 upheld the Centre’s proposal to give a six-month extension of service to Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar a day before he was due to retire on November 30.
“At this stage, the decision of the Union government to extend the services of the incumbent Chief Secretary for six months cannot be construed to be violative of the law or constitutional distribution of powers between the Union government and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD),” a three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said.
The Delhi government, represented by senior advocate A.M. Singhvi and advocate Shadan Farasat, had challenged the Centre’s “unilateral” proposal on the ground that Rule 16 of the All India Services (Death Cum Retirement) Benefits Rules, 1958 required the State government to make a recommendation for the six-month extension with the prior approval of the Union government.
