Fifty years of allotment, watch our website, says Ananth Kumar

This is being seen as part of his efforts to show that the NDA government had ‘‘not followed any policy of vlification or discrimination.’’ And that the beneficiaries come from a wide spectrum of social, political and cultural organisations. He cited examples of the Congress, trade unions, the Delhi Government, the Bar Association of India and the Press Club.

Referring to land allotted to organisations connected with Vijay Goel, Minister of State in the PMO, Kumar said that the allotment was ‘‘purely based on merits, for educational activities’’ before Goel became a minister.

‘‘In any case, there is no express or implied bar on allotment of land to any organisation, merely on the ground that one or more persons connected with the organisation is also associated with any political party, if it fulfils all the laid-down criteria.’’

On land allotted to political parties and their affiliates, he named the All India Congress Committee (now Jawahar Bhawan Trust/Rajiv Gandhi Foundation); A K Gopalan Trust (CPM); Ajoy Bhawan (CPI); Indian National Trade Union Congress and the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee among others.

He also referred to the ‘‘institutional land’’ allotted to various newspapers at Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg ‘‘with a specification that the land should be utilised only for the purpose of publishing a newspaper.’’

According to his statement, ‘‘the process of allotment of land to the institutions commenced with the allotment of land to various newspaper concerns here in the early Fifties.’’

As for the rock-bottom rates at which land was allotted, he said that the ‘‘the pre-determined’’ rates are ‘‘revised periodically in consultation with (Ministry of) Finance.’’ The last time the rate was revised was in April 1998 when it was raised from 80 lakh per acre for central and south Delhi to Rs 88 lakh per acre.

He cited the case of the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) and said the ‘‘requests of CITU and HMS are under active consideration and land will be allotted on completion of requisite formalities.’’

On land allotted to political parties and their affiliates, he named the All India Congress Committee (now Jawahar Bhawan Trust/Rajiv Gandhi Foundation); A K Gopalan Trust (CPM); Ajoy Bhawan (CPI); Indian National Trade Union Congress; Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee; Jawaharlal Nehru National Youth Centre; Jai Jawan Jai Kisan Trust; Yuva Bharati Trust; Centre for Indian Trade Union (B T Randive Memorial Trust); and, Bharat Sewak Samaj.

Listing land allotted to organisations headed by legal luminaries, he identified the Delhi Tax Bar Association, Society of Indian Law Firms (president Lalit Bhasin), Bar Association of India (president F S Nariman).

He said three plots had been allotted to the Delhi Government for establishing family courts.

Allotments made to ‘‘socio-cultural institutions of eminence’’ included the Child Relief and You (CRY); National Federation of the Blind; Rashtriya Sewa Samiti; Santhagiri Ashram; Rotary Habitat Centre; Delhi Malayali Association; Natya Tarangini; Jain Sabha; Krishnamoorthi Foundation; Press Club of India; Civil Services Officers Institute; Veda Vigyan Mahavidyapeeth; Sri Aurobindo Society; Servants of the People Society and the Sadhu Vaswani Mission.

Some of the 600 schools allotted land in Delhi, Ananth Kumar said, include the Delhi Public School Society, the Bharatiya Vidya Bhawan, Indraprastha College for Women, Mata Amrithanandamai School, Andhra Educational Society, Delhi Tamil Educational Association, G R Goenka Educational Institution, Madarsa Kaushiful-Uloom; Don Bosco School; and, Police Foundation Public School.