GIVING A new twist to the ongoing tussle over the Mahmudabad properties, the Custodian of Enemy Property in Mumbai has asked the administration to hand over the possession of Halwasiya Market also to the scion of the Raja.
Custodian Dinesh Singh’s missive has further compounded the problem of the authorities, who went into a huddle late Wednesday night at district magistrate Ramendra Tripathi’s residence to chalk out an action plan to get the properties vacated after Deember 25.
“It (the Custodian’s communique) was like a bolt from the blue to us. All this while we were given to understand that Halwasiya Market was not on the list of properties to be handed over to Mohd Amir Mohd Khan. Hence, we had not even issued notices to the three dozen odd shopkeepers of the market,” said an official.
The move, according to reliable sources, comes in the wake of a letter written to the Custodian by the erstwhile Raja’s legal counsel detailing the properties, possession of which was not handed over to Khan till July 28, 2006 as per the Supreme Court’s order.
The list, which mentioned the names of 20 important urban properties of the Raja in Mahmudabad, Biswan, Sitapur and Lucknow, also contained the name of Halwasiya Market located on 24, Mahatma Gandhi Marg. Subsequently, the Custodian faxed a letter to the administration here, asking them to hand over the possession of the market also to Khan.
{{/usCountry}}The list, which mentioned the names of 20 important urban properties of the Raja in Mahmudabad, Biswan, Sitapur and Lucknow, also contained the name of Halwasiya Market located on 24, Mahatma Gandhi Marg. Subsequently, the Custodian faxed a letter to the administration here, asking them to hand over the possession of the market also to Khan.
{{/usCountry}}The administration officials, however, were evasive when asked about the meeting’s outcome. “We will let you know what action we intend to take in the matter on Thursday,” said an officer.
The Hazratganj Traders’ Association, too, has convened a press conference here on Thursday to narrate the problems being faced by the tenants of the Raja.
Meanwhile, two more tenants of the erstwhile Raja, namely, RK Manocha and RR Sharma, filed a petition before the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court here saying that the apex court’s order did not apply to them, taking the total number of petitions in the matter to six.