Uttarakhand ex-CMs to get rent relief

On May 3, HC had directed former CMs to pay the market rent for the buildings occupied by them within six months, failing which the government was entitled to initiate recovery proceedings.

Updated on: Sep 7, 2019, 02:16:36 IST

Hindustan Times, Dehradun | By Neeraj Santoshi

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Uttarakhand governor Baby Rani Maurya has given assent to an ordinance that provides for many free facilities to former chief ministers and exempts them from paying rent at market rate for the bungalows allotted by the government.

The ordinance, passed by the cabinet last month and assented by the Governor on Thursday, will be deemed to have come into force from November 9, 2000 up to March 31, 2019. (Getty Images/iStockphoto file photo)

The Uttarakhand Former Chief Minister Facility (Residential and other facilities) Ordinance, 2019 has come as a relief to former CMs -- Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri, Bhagat Singh Koshyari, late ND Tiwari and Vijay Bahuguna -- who were directed by the Uttarakhand high court to pay the pending rent of ₹2.8 crore.

On May 3, HC had directed former CMs to pay the market rent for the buildings occupied by them within six months, failing which the government was entitled to initiate recovery proceedings.

The ordinance, passed by the cabinet last month and assented by the Governor on Thursday, will be deemed to have come into force from November 9, 2000 up to March 31, 2019, after which no former CM will be entitled to allotment of government residence and facilities.

Government spokesman Madan Kaushik said gazette notification on the ordinance would be done a week. Kartikey Hari Gupta, advocate of Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra, said the ordinance was promulgated to override HC directions.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More