The MP high court on Monday served notices to four MPs and four MLAs asking them to reply within three weeks as to how they got house allotments in government residential colonies in Bhopal despite owing multiple residential properties.
Similar notice was also served to the MP Housing Board by a division bench of acting chief justice Sushil Harkoli and justice Alok Aradhe. The court ordered serving notices upon the MPs and MLAs after allowing them to be made respondents in the public interested litigation challenging the house allotments.
The MPs and MLAs are facing allegations of suppressing facts regarding their previously owned residential plots/houses to get allotments in housing colonies developed by state agencies. The allotments have been made in various residential colonies like Mahadev Parishar, Keelandev Parishar, Tulsi Towers and Green Meadows.
The PIL was filed by former director general of police (DGP) of MP Arun Gurtoo and former DGP of Kerela Upendra Verma. The petitioners filed the PIL in October 2010 challenging the state government order of April 23, 2007 giving 20% reservation to MPs and MLAs in government developed housing colonies.
The state government then justified in court through an affidavit that the quota was meant only for those people's representative who did not own any housing dwelling anywhere in state in their, their wife or children's names. The MPHB also joined this justification.
{{/usCountry}}The state government then justified in court through an affidavit that the quota was meant only for those people's representative who did not own any housing dwelling anywhere in state in their, their wife or children's names. The MPHB also joined this justification.
{{/usCountry}}However, the petitioners filed lists of allottees in various colonies along with their complete property details that clearly showed that the eight MP/MLAs in question had got the house allotted despite having previous residential properties.
Counsel for petitioners, Siddharth R Gupta, argued in the court on Monday that the MP/MLAs had resorted to fraudulent suppression of property details to get the house allotments and that the allotments were clearly illegal in view of the affidavit filed by state government in court (as mentioned above).
Allegation against Sandeep Dixit is that he was never elected MLA or MP from Madhya Pradesh but still got house allotted against the MLA/ MP's quota. As for all others, the principal allegation is that they themselves disclosed their multiple properties before the Election Commission of India before elections, but failed to do so during process of house allotment.