Delhi high court seeks Centre’s view on office space for AAP in national capital

The Delhi high court on Tuesday sought the union housing ministry’s stand on Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) minister Imran Hussain’s proposal to allot his house to the AAP, till the party is allotted an alternative land for construction of a permanent office.

A bench of justice Subramonium Prasad asked Centre’s counsel Kirtiman Singh to take instructions, on being informed that the minister was ready to forego the house occupied by him on Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg, if the same is allotted to the party.

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“He (counsel for the petitioner) states that says that at present 22 23 DDU is in occupation of the minister of the AAP government and the minister is ready to forgo the allotment if the same is given to the party till allotment of alternate piece of land is given to the petitioner for construction of the party office. Mr Kirtiman Singh is directed to take instructions on this matter,” the court said in its order, posting the matter for May 15.

The move comes months after the Supreme Court on March 4 had given the AAP time till June 15 to vacate a building used by the party as its political headquarters at Delhi’s Rouse Avenue, noting that the plot was allotted and required for expanding judicial infrastructure of Delhi district judiciary.

A bench headed by the Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud observed that AAP has “no lawful right to continue on the land” after its allotment to the Delhi high court for upgrading the district judiciary infrastructure. The bench, also comprising justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, acknowledged the AAP’s concerns regarding the allotment of an alternative plot in the Capital to run its political affairs and allowed the party to approach the Centre’s land and development office (L&DO) for allotment of a different plot for its office.

The court was addressing a plea filed by AAP seeking directions to the Centre to allot a housing unit from the general pool for party office on payment of licence fee, until it is allotted a permanent plot.

The plea asserted that Section 26 (iii) of the Compendium of the Allotment of Government Residences (General Pool in Delhi) Rules, 1963, allowed the president of a recognised political party to retain one residential accommodation, provided that no other allotment has been allotted to the official in any other capacity.

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In another petition, the party also sought directions to the union housing ministry to allot it suitable land within central Delhi for constructing its office for the national and Delhi state units, in view of it being recognised as a national party. In this petition, the AAP also sought quashing of the June 26 and September 15, 2023 letters issued by the housing ministry, rejecting the party’s request for allotment of land on the ground of unavailability of vacant land at Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg or other centrally located area.

On Tuesday, the AAP, represented by senior advocate Sudhir Nandrajog, contended that though the Centre in February 2002 allotted plot 23 and 24 for setting up family courts in New Delhi, the same was cancelled by a communication in September 2020. He said that the current plots were occupied by an AAP minister who was ready to forgo the allotment if the same is given to the party till allotment of an alternative plot.