Delhi HC asks Subramanian Swamy to vacate govt accommodation within 6 weeks
Justice Yashwant Varma said the allotment was made for five years and that period had come to an end, adding that the court was not shown any material that makes it mandatory for government accommodation to be provided to those who get Z-category protection.
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BJP MP Subramanian Swamy (File)The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed former Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy to vacate within six weeks the government accommodation that he had been allotted in the national capital’s Lutyens’ Bungalow Zone in 2016.
Justice Yashwant Varma said the allotment was made for five years and that period had come to an end, adding that the court was not shown any material that makes it mandatory for government accommodation to be provided to those who get Z-category protection. Swamy, who continues to receive Z-category protection, had approached the court seeking to be allowed to continue in the government accommodation, saying that the facilities at his private house were not enough to accommodate the security personnel assigned to him.
The court, however, said that authorities should “ensure that adequate arrangements are made in the residential premises which the petitioner shall now occupy so that his security is safeguarded.”
Swamy’s tenure as a member of the Upper House of Parliament ended in April this year.
Senior Advocate Jayant Mehta, representing Swamy, submitted that he was allotted the accommodation in January 2016 for a period of five years on security grounds on the payment of a licence fee, and that it continued to remain with him as a member of Rajya Sabha. Swamy’s counsel further submitted that he was not in default of any payment and continued to be a Z-category protectee.
“I have no difficulty to shift to my personal accommodation. [But] personal accommodation is insufficient . As [someone who is protected] by these many guards, I am required not only to ensure their accommodation but also facilities in the household for them to rest, stay and meet their basic needs. My private house cannot accommodate so many guards,” Swamy’s counsel submitted.
Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain, representing the Centre, submitted that Swamy’s Z-category security cover has not been downgraded, and that in 2016, his request for a government accommodation was acceded to “for whatever considerations”. He was given a house for five years and it was not transferred to the Rajya Sabha pool when he became an MP, the court was told.
“MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) did not say even at that time that Z-category security requires an accommodation to be given, and this is what MHA is saying even now that Z-category security has nothing to do with an accommodation being mandatory. The Z-category security can be provided in his accommodation. He has a palatial house in Nizamuddin East, located at a very nice location,” Jain submitted.
Jain said the Public Premises Act has been pressed into service, and Swamy has been declared an unauthorised occupant. Steps for his eviction have not been taken up as the matter was pending before the court, the government counsel submitted. Jain further said that protecting agencies would continue to extend Z-category protection to Swamy, subject to periodical review, and take all warranted steps to ensure his safety and security at his private house.
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