Says Accommodation Cannot Be Same After Minister Or Bureaucrat Ceases To Occupy Office

Srinagar: The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has asked the government to inform it about the nature of accommodation provided to politicians and former bureaucrats and reason for doing so in Jammu and Kashmir.
Hearing a Public Interest Litigation, seeking eviction of former ministers, MLAs from ministerial bungalows, the Division Bench Chief Justice N. Kotishwar Singh and Justice Puneet Gupta asked the administration to apprise it by July 19.
“We have perused the report submitted in a sealed cover. This report is kept in a sealed cover again. The report, however, does not address the issue which has been raised before this Court, as to whether a person who is entitled to security cover would also be entitled to Government accommodation as these are the two separate issues.”
S.S.Ahmed, counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner submitted before this Court regarding the decision of this Court rendered on 26.12.2022, whereby it has been clearly held that the security assessment and entitlement to Government accommodation are two different issues and cannot be intermingled.
“Thus, the inference can be drawn is that while because of certain threat perception security cover can be granted to a person, it is not necessary that the person has to be provided the Government accommodation also, which was also the stand of the Administration in the aforesaid case,” the court said, adding, “It was submitted that there is no requirement in law for the government to provide accommodation as well to a person who is being provided a security cover.”
Further, the court said, even if accommodation was required to be provided in exceptional circumstances, the accommodation to be provided to a former Chief Minister/Minister or a retired bureaucrat cannot be the same after his ceasing to occupy the office as he was occupying when he was in office.
“The relevant portion of para (8) of the order dated 26.12.2022 passed in CM Nos. 7467/2022 & 7468/2022, reads as under:- “8. We have carefully gone through all the communications, referred by learned Sr. Counsel appearing for the applicant and there is nothing to suggest that persons occupying the Government accommodations can be evicted only after the review/ re-asessment of their threat perceptions,” the court said, adding, “As a matter of fact, this Court vide order dated 05.12.2020 has clarified this position in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the said order which reads thus: “3. In response to our query, we are informed that there is no requirement in law for the government to provide accommodation as well to a person who is being provided a security cover. (4) In any case, even if accommodation was required to be provided in exceptional circumstances, the accommodation of a former chief minister/minister or a retired bureaucrat cannot be the same after his ceasing to occupy the office as he was occupying when he was in office.””
The report which has been submitted before it does not show any reason why the persons have been given the official accommodation, though they may require security cover, the court said. “We, therefore, would like to know from the Administration as to the nature of the accommodation provided to these persons and the reasons for doing so by the next date.”

Press Trust of India