Order evicting late MoD Dir's wife from govt house upheld

A city court has rejected the plea of a former Defence Ministry Director's widow against an order asking her to vacate the government accommodation in south Delhi allotted to her late husband.
The court dismissed the appeal of the widow, a Chief Public Prosecutor, against a 2015 order of Estate Officer directing her eviction from the government house in Andrews Ganj Extension allotted to her late husband, a former Director in the Armed Forces Film and Photo Division of the Ministry of Defence, who died in 2012.
Under the Allotment of Government Residences (General Poolin Delhi) Rules1963andGuidelines, offices eligible for allotment of GPRA (General Pool Residential Accommodation) are listed.

However, it was found that the office of the Directorate of Prosecution, with which she was employed, was not listed as eligible.
"It is a fact that since the office of employment of (the widow) finds no mention in the list of offices eligible for allotment of GPRA at Delhi, she is not entitled for regularisation of the same accommodation in her name which was (earlier) allotted to her deceased husband during his lifetime, as Director in Ministry of Defence...," Additional DistrictJudgeGurvinder Pal Singh said.
As per the government memorandum of 2014, in the event of the death of an allottee, the same accommodation of GPRA can be regularised in the name of eligible spouse/ward of the deceased allottee, if he or she is entitled for it.

However, if not entitled, an alternate accommodation of entitled lower type may be allotted on payment of a normal license fee irrespective of where the eligible person had been residing with the allottee prior to the death of the allottee subject to fulfillment of the conditions laid therein.

The court noted that the woman had got extention of one year in the accommodation after the death of her husband but did not vacate the house after the expiry of the extended period.
"Said public premises were not vacated within period of one year of demise of allottee or even after expiry of the extended period of one year i.e. after two years of death of the allottee by family members of deceased allottee including the appellant," the court said.

The woman had sought retention of the public premises which was allowed to her from February 15, 2013 to February 14, 2014 by the Assistant Director of Estates.
Since the public premises were not vacated by the family members of the deceased allottee, a show cause notice was issued on April 9, 2014. This was followed by the impugned eviction order of July 29, 2015 asking them to vacate the premises.