Mumbai:

The partial stay order, which the SC has now passed on 9 April, directs that the examination of the central government role may be excluded temporarily till further notice. While the examining role of state government, Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB), their consultants like Crisil and Freshfield and other financial institutions may be continued.

Sources close to the development say on 9 April, the attorney general moved the SC late in the afternoon without giving notice to the state government or the Kurdukar Commission and told the court that the Maharashtra government is committing a constitutional impropriety by getting a state government-appointed commission to probe and scrutinise the decisions taken by the central government and the Central Electricity Authority. Thereby, he said, the state government is trespassing into the powers of the central government.

Former Maharashtra chief ministers Sharad Pawar and Manohar Joshi, former chief secretary N Raghunathan and former cabinet secretary S Rajagopal had all argued before the ECI during the last three months that under the proviso of Article 162, the state government cannot exercise its executive powers, if there is a conflict with the central government.

The ECI held the hearing on 10 April, where in various parties were heard on the implication of the stay order. Pradyumna Kaul of Enron Virodhi Andolan argued that since the SC has allowed investigation into the role of all other parties, except central government, the commission might continue its hearing without any hindrance.

He further argued that the stay order affected only the first clause in the terms of references, whereas the remaining three clauses are not affected and therefore the commission will not find any conflict with the stay order. Advocate A J Rana of the union government however argued that the terms of reference are interconnected and therefore the work of the commission needs to be suspended.