Puducherry power tussle: SC agrees to hear Kiran Bedi's plea

New Delhi [India], May 28 (ANI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear next week a plea filed by Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi, seeking direction for maintaining status quo as it existed before the Madras High Court order which curtailed her authority to act independently of the elected government.
The plea, mentioned before a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, stated that Chief Minister V Narayanasamy issued orders even after the top court on May 10 admitted appeals of the Centre and Bedi against the Madras High Court.
Bedi demanded that status quo prior to Madras High Court's order that curtailed her powers ought to have been maintained after the Supreme Court issued notice on the same. However, this was not complied with, she contended.
"Pursuant to the order dated May 10, 2019, propriety demanded that status quo ante as it existed prior to the impugned judgment dated April 30 having been passed, be maintained. However it was not to be," the plea stated.
On April 30, the High court had asked Bedi not to interfere in the day-to-day administration of the Union Territory, especially when an elected government is in place.
The apex court had on May 10 issued a notice to Congress MLA K Laksminarayanan, on whose plea the High Court had passed a judgement on April 30, and others on the Centre and LG's appeals. The top court had refused to stay the High Court's order.
Acting on the petition filed by Lakshminarayanan, the Madras High Court ruled that the LG doesn't have rights to interfere in the daily affairs of the elected government and pressed that incessant interference from her would amount to "running a parallel government". (ANI)