The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Uttar Pradesh government to respond to a petition seeking contempt of court action against State authorities for failing to vacate five former chief ministers overstaying in government bungalows.
A Bench led by Justice Dipak Misra sought the response from the Director of Estates of the State government within three weeks as to why the government bungalows allotted to them were not vacated in time.
Uttar Pradesh-based NGO 'Lok Prahari' sought action against the authorities for acting in contempt of a Supreme Court verdict on August 1, 2016 directing them to ensure that the former chief ministers vacated the bungalows.
The five ex-CMs of UP are Rajnath Singh, Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mayawati and N.D. Tiwari. Another former chief minister Ram Naresh Yadav is no more.
In its last year verdict, the court had held that former chief ministers should hand over possession of the bungalows occupied by them.
It had said the state government should also recover appropriate rent from the occupants of the bungalows for the period during which they were "unauthorised" to do so.
It had also said that the local laws only gave largesse to former chief ministers "without any element of reasonableness".
The judgment had come on a petition filed by an NGO, Lok Prahari Foundation, exposing the fact that these former chief ministers were occupying Type VI government bungalows even after demitting office. It challenged the validity of the Ex-Chief Ministers Residence Allotment Rules, 1997, allowing life-long residence to them.
In one case, the court found that a former Chief Minister was allotted a bungalow on lease for 30 years, renewable for another 90 years at a yearly rent of Re. 1.
Uttar Pradesh had argued that the court had no jurisdiction to interfere in its executive decisions. It denied any preferential treatment as former Chief Ministers were treated as a “class of persons” under the Rules. It had said some of them enjoyed Z-plus security and required proper supporting infrastructure.
Countering this, the Supreme Court had pointed out that the Uttar Pradesh Ministers (Salaries, Allowances and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act of 1981 specifically provided that a government minister, including Chief Minister, should vacate his or her bungalow within 15 days of demitting office. eom
