Journalism of Courage
Nearly a year after The Indian Express reported that several sitting MPs had recommended former MPs for guest accommodation in Lutyens’ Delhi, both Houses of Parliament have started taking corrective action. While the Lok Sabha Secretariat has stopped such allotments, the Rajya Sabha has initiated action to evict former MP guests overstaying in these quarters.
In response to an RTI plea by The Indian Express, the Lok Sabha Secretariat has said, “The guest accommodations in respect of MPs of the 14th and 15th Lok Sabha have been cancelled consequent upon dissolution of the 15th Lok Sabha. No such guest accommodation is being extended during the 16th Lok Sabha.” It added that litigation in respect of all guest accommodations had been filed with the Directorate of Estates.
In response to a separate RTI application, the Rajya Sabha Secretariat said that it has asked the Directorate of Estates to “initiate eviction proceedings” against the overstaying ‘guests’ of MPs.
At the discretion of the government, MPs are entitled to bungalows which that they can recommend to their ‘guests’ for a maximum of three months.
While the idea of these guest bungalows is to accommodate ordinary voters and party workers who come to the capital to meet the MP, The Indian Express had, in an RTI investigation done on September 3 last year, reported that of the 51 guest houses occupied at that time by guests of MPs of both Houses, 38 were former MPs and some had been staying for years. Of the 106 allotments made since 2007 on the recommendation of 96 MPs, 14 were allotted without even mentioning the name of the guests.
While the Lok Sabha Secretariat has cancelled the guest accommodations of MPs, the Rajya Sabha is yet to take action against several guests who have been staying for years in these bungalows on the recommendations of MPs. Sources in the Rajya Secretariat confirmed that there are at least 20 guests in these bungalows who have been staying for more than a year, some even for three years and more.
For instance, Shruti, daughter of former BJP president Bangaru Laxman, was allotted 228, North Avenue in May this year and on August 6, the Secretariat requested for initiating “eviction proceedings”.
Former BJP treasurer and Rajasthan leader Ramdas Agrawal had been staying at 209, VP House as a guest of Om Prakash Mathur since November 2013 but on August 7 this year, his case was forwarded for eviction, the RTI response says. Harikesh Bahadur, a former MP, was allotted 201-B, VP House as a guest of Prof. Alka Kshatriya for a month on January 3 this year but when he did not vacate the accommodation, on June 24 this year, the Secretariat requested for eviction proceedings in his case as well, the RTI response says.
RAJYA SABHA GUIDELINE
The Upper House has drafted a guideline on who should be allotted guest accommodations. The guideline, accessed by The Indian Express under the RTI Act, approved by the House Committee of the Rajya Sabha on November 19, 2009, says, “In the allotment of guest accommodation, priority will be given to the applicant, where the guest happens to be an ex-MP.”
