'Inauspicious' govt bungalow to be turned into state guest

The sprawling bungalow at 33, Shamnath Marg in Delhi's Civil Lines area will soon be turned into a state guest house as no senior official or political leader is willing to live there given its "inauspicious" past.
The Delhi government's spacious four-bedroom bungalow is considered to be worth several crores and is located just a stone's throw away from the old secretariat; but it carries the tag of being "inauspicious".
"The four-bedroom bungalow was the official residence of the then BJP Chief Minister Madan Lal Khurana, but he had to resign mid-way due to the hawala scandal. His successor, Sahib Singh Verma, lost his chief ministership soon after shifting to this place," a Delhi government official told PTI when asked why this house is considered "jinxed".

Another official pointed out that even Congress leader Deep Chand Bandhu had moved into the house after he became the Industries Minister in 1998, but later died of illness.
"Because of these and several other incidents, no senior officer was willing to move into the house and it was lying vacant for several years. Only last year, an IAS officer moved into the house, but he vacated it in February this year," the official said.
Sources said former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit was also offered the house, but she refused. Delhi government has been using it as a venue for press conferences and parties.

"The Delhi Lieutenant Governor has recently approved the proposal to convert the bungalow into a state guest house. The guest house may get operational by the end of next month," Divisional Commissioner (Revenue) Dharam Pal told PTI.

Pal, along with Principal Secretary of the Public Works Department, Arun Baroka, recently visited the bungalow to inspect the premises.
According to the officials, the government has for quite some time been planning to convert it into a state guest house.
Apart from four bedrooms, the bungalow has a drawing-cum- dining room and seven quarters for domestic helps. It also has two garages, one storeroom and a spacious guard room.