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Former ministers asked to vacate official bungalows

Tags: New Delhi

Published by: Noor Khan

Published: Wed, 03 Jun 2009 at 19:29 IST

New Delhi, Jun 3 : Having lost the elections, some high-profile ministers in the
UPA government's first term like Ram Vilas Paswan, Renuka Choudhury and
Mani Shankar Aiyar are among the defeated politicians who have been shown
the door in the Capital.

The Directorate of Estates under the Urban Development ministry has issued
notices to 26 former ministers who lost at the hustings asking them to vacate
within a month their sprawling official bungalows occupied by them. Similar
notices have also been sent to 23 MPs.

The Directorate is showing urgency to deal with the shortage of official

accomodation in the Capital since new ministers are already in office and
several first-time MPs are looking for a home.

Acknowledging the shortage of accommodation, Urban Development Minister

S Jaipal Reddy told PTI, "There is a problem. Demands are rising. It is not only
ministers or MPs, there are also senior government officials and members of
commissions who are entitled for houses in the Lutyen's Zone." Ministers
like Shankar Singh Vaghela and A R Antulay, who lost, have also been
asked by the directorate to vacate their sprawling bungalows.

Priya Ranjan Dashmunshi, a former minister, who did not contest the elections
this time because of illness, has also been asked to vacate his house.

RJD strongman and former Railways minister, who has returned to Lok Sabha,
will have to keep his fingers crossed whether he will be asked to move to a
smaller bungalow. (MORE)
 India

Former ministers told to house-hunt

2 Jun 2009, 0000 hrs IST, Mahendra Kumar Singh, TNN

NEW DELHI: Within days of the new ministers having taken charge, some

high-profile members of the former Cabinet who lost the recently-held

elections have been told to find a roof over their heads.
Ram Vilas Paswan, P R Dasmunsi, Mani Shankar Aiyar,
Shankarsinh Waghela, A R Antulay and Renuka
Choudhary have been asked to vacate their sprawling
official bungalows in Lutyens Zone within a month.

The urban development ministry has, in fact, asked 26 former ministers

and 23 MPs who lost the polls or did not contest them to vacate their
bungalows within a month. "It is a routine process. The ministry served
the notices the day new House was constituted," ministry sources said.

But this, the sources said, has not deterred many of the former ministers
and MPs from doing the rounds of the UD ministry to seek more time.
The ministry is, however, under pressure to allot bungalows to at least
27 ministers and the sources said it would be not possible to give the
earlier occupants extension of stay.

The others ex-ministers who have been served notices to vacate the
bungalows or move to smaller ones are: Mahabir Prasad, Santosh
Mohan Dev, Ambarish, Shakil Ahmad and EVS Elangovan. Similar
notices have also gone out to the RJD's former ministers M A Fatmi,
Kanti Singh, Raghunath Jha and Akhilesh Prasad Singh.

The UD ministry has to allot bungalows or flats to the newly-appointed

ministers and MPs as soon as possible. Officials said that more than 25
ministers in the new dispensation and a host of first-time MPs have to
be given official accommodation.

Among the new ministers, foreign minister S M Krishna has been

allotted 19, Teen Murti Lane, the bungalow occupied by K Natwar
Singh. Some of the other prominent new ministers needing bungalows
are: Vilasrao Deshmukh (heavy industries), C P Joshi (rural
development), Salman Khursheed (minority affairs), Mallikarjun
Kharge (labour) and Krishna Tirath (women and child development).
Besides the Congress ministers, DMK's M K Azhagiri and most of the
Trinamool Congress ministers also have to be allotted bungalows.

Officials, however, suggested that it might be difficult to satisfy

everyone considering the paucity of bungalows and that many ministers
may not get houses of their choice.
Meanwhile, sources pointed out that after losing the Lok Sabha polls,
LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan, who lives in 12, Janpath, next door to 10
Janpath -- the residence of Congress president Sonia Gandhi -- wasted
no time in turning his residence into the party office and seeking
allotment in the name of the party. However, Paswan may not be
successful in retaining the sprawling bungalow as the UD ministry
recently formulated a policy not to allot Lutyens bungalows to any
political party.
RJD chief Lalu Prasad, who managed to win the election but lost his
place in the ministry, is also said to be trying hard to retain his Type-III
bungalow on ground of his seniority in Parliament and status of a
former chief minister.