New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is preparing to intensify its battle to get a Central government accommodation for its National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal in Lutyens’ Delhi, a party leader said on Friday.
While a matter related to the issue is likely to come up before the Delhi High Court in the coming days, the party leader said that since vacating his official residence at 6, Flagstaff Road on October 4, 2024, after stepping down as Chief Minister, Kejriwal has been staying at the official residence of another party MP near Mandi House.
Earlier, High Court’s Justice Subramonium Prasad, in a judgment delivered on June 5, 2024, directed the Directorate of Estates, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, to allot a bungalow to the AAP for use as a party office of the national party – a direction that has since been complied with.
The AAP leader said on Friday that while a bungalow has been allotted for use as party office, no accommodation has yet been offered to the National Convenor despite a clear entitlement under the Central government’s guidelines.
He said that the 2003 Guidelines for allotment of accommodation from General Pool to national political parties state, “One residential accommodation would be allotted/allowed to be retained by the party president of recognised national party in case the president does not have a house in Delhi, either of his own or allotted by Government in any other capacity.”
As for an office for National Parties, the Guidelines state, “The National Political parties, which have been recognised as such by the Election Commission of India, would be allowed to retain/secure allotment of one housing unit from General Pool in Delhi for their office use on payment of licence fee.”
“The said accommodation will be provided for a period of three years during which the party would acquire a plot of land in an institutional area and will construct its own accommodation for party office,” say the Guidelines.
Meanwhile, the BJP slammed the AAP’s attempt to seek an official residence for Kejriwal – a move which allegedly contradicts his earlier promise of not using any official residence or VIP facility.
Reacting to the AAP’s renewed efforts to seek an official accommodation for Kejriwal, a BJP leader said, “The AAP wants residential accommodation for its party president after promising that he will not take any sarkari suvidha! So much for Arvind Kejriwal’s credibility, who came into politics on exaggerated promises.”
In the run-up to the last Assembly elections, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva had also attacked the AAP chief, stating, “Kejriwal said that I swear on my children that I will not take any government car, bungalow or security.”
(IANS)
