Atishi 'removed' from Delhi CM's residence: How is official house allotted

The bitter blame game over the occupation of the Flagstaff Road bungalow between the AAP, BJP, and Delhi LG's office erupted after former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal vacated the residence last week

The Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party have gotten into a new political controversy after Delhi Chief Minister Atishi was made to ‘forcibly vacate’ the 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow in the national capital, as alleged by the AAP. The ruling party labelled the incident as ‘defiance’ of protocol, claiming that officials were not allotting the residence to Atishi due to BJP’s pressure.

In response, Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta accused the CM of ‘illegally’ occupying the bungalow.

The blame game erupted over the occupation of the Flagstaff Road bungalow after former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal vacated the residence last week, making way for his successor Atishi to move in. Atishi had moved into the bungalow on Monday.

While the AAP claimed that the bungalow’s keys were handed over to Atishi by Public Works Department (PWD) officials, sources from Delhi LG’s office said that the particular bungalow, 6, Flagstaff Road, is not the CM’s designated residence and it is not allotted to Atishi yet. They said the process would be done once the preparation of inventories for the residence is completed.

What is the rule to allot CM’s residence?

Supreme Court lawyer Abhishek Rai explained that a CM has to apply for the residence that they wish to occupy. The bungalow either belongs to the central pool or the General Administration Department (GAD) pool or is subsequently allocated after application. 

“There is no specified designated residence of Delhi CM…in the past too, various CMs have resided in different houses, including some in the GAD pool or the central pool residences…,” he said.

He also said that once a CM resigns, they have to vacate the allotted house within a reasonable period, which is about two-three weeks otherwise they have to pay penal interest. “...the rules are the same for the central government…for the pools, the rules are the same…”