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(i) Council of Ministers and the Lieutenant Governor; and (ii) the Lieutenant Governor and the President, it would be necessary to advert to some of the other provisions of Article 239AA which have a bearing on those relationships. The Lieutenant Governor, as we have noted earlier, is appointed by the President under Article 239(1) read with Article 239AA(1). The Chief Minister is appointed by the President, while the other ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the Chief Minister. They hold office during the pleasure of the President (clause 5). The concept of collective responsibility of the Council of Ministers to the legislative assembly is expressly embodied in clause 6. A comparative analysis of the provisions of the Constitution relating to the Council of Ministers in the Union and the States indicates that in the case of the NCT, Article 239AA has engrafted the fundamental precept of the collective responsibility of an elected government in a cabinet form of government to the elected legislature. Creating an executive power in government which is co-extensive with the legislative power of the elected legislature and the collective responsibility of the Council of Ministers to the legislature are intrinsic to the cabinet form of government. 47 Parliament has, by clause 7 of Article 239AA, been empowered to make provisions to implement and to supplement the other provisions of that Article. Any law enacted by Parliament to do so would not amount to a constitutional  PART F amendment within the meaning of Article 368 even if it amends or has the effect of amending any provision of the Constitution. 48 Article 239AB enunciates the course of action which the President is empowered to follow where there has been a failure of constitutional machinery in the NCT. Article 239AB provides as follows:

(c) The position that the application of Article 239 is not excluded in relation to the NCT is made evident by Article 239AB. In a situation in which the President is empowered to suspend the provisions of Article 239AA, where the administration of the NCT cannot be carried on in accordance with Article 239AA, or of any law made in pursuance of that Article, the President is empowered to make consequential provisions for administering the territory in accordance with Article 239 as well as Article 239AA. Hence, the provisions of Article 239AA cannot be read disjunctive from Article 239(1);

 PART G 61 Section 36 assumes significance in the context of the present controversy, because its provisions must be distinguished from the position which was adopted when the sixty ninth amendment was introduced in Article 239AA into the Constitution. Four features of Section 36 stand out : first, the requirement of the concurrence of the Chief Commissioner to every decision concerning New Delhi; second, empowerment of the Chief Commissioner, in the event of a difference of opinion to act in his discretion for the administration of New Delhi; third, the mandate of the Chief Commissioner being required to preside over meetings of the Council of Ministers; and fourth, the requirement of referring any difference of opinion on whether a matter concerned New Delhi to the President whose decision would be final. Article 239AA has made a departure in critical matters from the position as it obtained under Section 36. First, (unlike the second proviso to Section 36(1)), Article 239AA(4) does not mandate that every decision of the Council of Ministers should be subject to the concurrence of the Lieutenant Governor; second, the provision (in the second proviso to Section 36(1)) empowering the Chief Commissioner to act in his discretion on the administration of New Delhi is absent in Article 239AA(4) except where the Lieutenant Governor on a reference of a difference of opinion to the President has to deal with an emergent situation; and third, neither in Article 239AA nor in the GNCTD Act (and for that matter in the Transaction of Business Rules) has it been provided that the Lieutenant Governor would preside over meetings of the Council of Ministers. Section 36 of the erstwhile Act of 1951 created a hierarchical structure which placed the Chief  PART G Commissioner as an authority superior to the Council of Ministers in the exercise of its executive power. Every decision of the Council of Ministers concerning New Delhi was subject to the concurrence of the Chief Commissioner. The absence of such a provision in Article 239AA cannot be regarded as a matter of no constitutional significance. Historically the constituent body had before it a model which was created by the parliamentary enactment of 1951 but advisedly did not choose to engraft it into the provisions of Article 239AA when the sixty ninth amendment was adopted. 62 The provisions of the Constitution relating to Part A, Part B and Part C States were abrogated with the adoption of the seventh amendment 75 in 1956. Section 130 of the States Reorganization Act 1956 repealed the 1951 Act. The result has been explained in the Statement of Objects and Reasons for the 1956 Act.

 PART H 73 Delhi presents a special constitutional status under Article 239AA. This is fortified when those provisions are read in contrast with Articles 239A and 240. Article 239AA does not incorporate the language or scheme of Article 240(1), which enables the President to frame regulations for peace, progress and good government of the Union territories referred to in Article 240(1). This proviso to Article 240(1) indicates that once a Parliamentary law has been framed, the President shall not frame regulations for Puducherry. In the case of Delhi, Article 239AA does not leave the constitution of a legislature or the Council of Ministers to a law to be framed by Parliament in future. Article 239AA mandates that there shall be a legislative assembly for the NCT and there shall be a Council of Ministers, with the function of tendering aid and advice to the Lieutenant Governor. The “there shall be” formulation is indicative of a constitutional mandate. Bringing into being a legislative assembly and a Council of Ministers for the NCT was not relegated by Parliament (in its constituent power) to its legislative wisdom at a future date upon the enactment of enabling legislation. Clause 7(a) of Article 239AA enables Parliament by law to make provisions to give effect to or to supplement the provisions contained in that Article. Parliament’s power is to enforce, implement and fortify Article 239AA and its defining norms.