Centre assures Delhi high court: Arvind Kejriwal to be allotted government bungalow soon

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal may soon receive a government bungalow. On Thursday, the Delhi High Court heard the case regarding Kejriwal's allotment of a government bungalow in Delhi. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the central government, assured the court that Kejriwal would be allotted a government bungalow within the next 10 days as per the rules.

The Aam Aadmi Party lawyer asked the court to order Kejriwal to be allotted a Type-8 or Type-7 bungalow. The Solicitor General remarked, "Common people don't fight for Type-8 bungalows."

The High Court reserved its order taking on record the assurance of the Solicitor General and said that it would pronounce its decision on the issue soon.

The Solicitor General again assured that the bungalow will be allotted to Kejriwal as per the rules.

The High Court stated that it was important to pay attention to the functioning of the ministry, which is open not only to politicians but also to non-politicians. The Court viewed the matter as an issue that needed to be resolved.

In the last hearing, the Delhi High Court had directed the Central Government that the process of bungalow allotment should be transparent and a clear system should be implemented for this.

The court had also ordered that the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and the Director of the Directorate of Estates should be present in the next hearing through video conferencing.

It is noteworthy that the Aam Aadmi Party has been demanding a government accommodation for Arvind Kejriwal in the national capital, as he is the president of a recognised national party.

In its plea, it also cited the guidelines for allotment of accommodation, which state that the president of a recognised national party is entitled to a government accommodation in Delhi if he neither owns his own house nor has been allotted one in any other official capacity.