05-01-2007, 07:09 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>MPs, bureaucrats under scanner for rent default </b>
Pioneer News Service | New Delhi
More than 400 people, including MPs, bureaucrats, artists and journalists occupying Government bungalows across the country are in default of payment of rent amounting to several crores of rupees.
The Centre has revealed this staggering figure before the Supreme Court in response to a query made by Court about the total number of illegal occupants in Government bungalows.
An affidavit filed on Tuesday by the Director of Estates has revealed a list of 400 such occupants staying illegally in Government bungalows who have failed to pay license fee upto March 31, 2007.
Prominent among the defaulters include three General Secretaries of the Indian National Congress who have to pay over Rs 1 crore as rent for holding unauthorised occupation of bungalows situated at No 5, Raisina Road, No CII/109 Chanakya Puri and 26, Akbar Road respectively.
Even the State Congress unit ranks high in the list of defaulters with a pending amount of over Rs 50 crore. The State unit of BJP situated at 14, Pandit Pant Marg also has a due amount of about Rs 19 lakh. Senior leaders of the BJP along with former Bihar Governor Buta Singh and the family of former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao and late Congress MP Sunil Dutt also find mention in the list.
Presenting these details before a Bench of Justices BN Agrawal, PP Naolekar and RV Raveendran, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Amrendra Saran stated that recovery proceeding against the 400 persons is in process. While no amount has yet been recovered, the Government told the Court that demand notices have been issued and response is awaited from the occupants of the properties in question.
Besides the names given in the list, the Centre submitted two separate lists with its affidavit detailing the cases where the illegal occupants have resorted to legal action and proceedings are pending decision in various courts across the country. The number of such cases amounts to 45. The Government has written to the standing counsels representing the Centre in the respective courts to move appropriate applications for disposing the matter within four months from the date of application, as per the apex court's direction on the earlier hearing of the case on January 17.
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Pioneer News Service | New Delhi
More than 400 people, including MPs, bureaucrats, artists and journalists occupying Government bungalows across the country are in default of payment of rent amounting to several crores of rupees.
The Centre has revealed this staggering figure before the Supreme Court in response to a query made by Court about the total number of illegal occupants in Government bungalows.
An affidavit filed on Tuesday by the Director of Estates has revealed a list of 400 such occupants staying illegally in Government bungalows who have failed to pay license fee upto March 31, 2007.
Prominent among the defaulters include three General Secretaries of the Indian National Congress who have to pay over Rs 1 crore as rent for holding unauthorised occupation of bungalows situated at No 5, Raisina Road, No CII/109 Chanakya Puri and 26, Akbar Road respectively.
Even the State Congress unit ranks high in the list of defaulters with a pending amount of over Rs 50 crore. The State unit of BJP situated at 14, Pandit Pant Marg also has a due amount of about Rs 19 lakh. Senior leaders of the BJP along with former Bihar Governor Buta Singh and the family of former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao and late Congress MP Sunil Dutt also find mention in the list.
Presenting these details before a Bench of Justices BN Agrawal, PP Naolekar and RV Raveendran, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Amrendra Saran stated that recovery proceeding against the 400 persons is in process. While no amount has yet been recovered, the Government told the Court that demand notices have been issued and response is awaited from the occupants of the properties in question.
Besides the names given in the list, the Centre submitted two separate lists with its affidavit detailing the cases where the illegal occupants have resorted to legal action and proceedings are pending decision in various courts across the country. The number of such cases amounts to 45. The Government has written to the standing counsels representing the Centre in the respective courts to move appropriate applications for disposing the matter within four months from the date of application, as per the apex court's direction on the earlier hearing of the case on January 17.
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