Why different material for VIP houses, shelter homes, HC asks UT

The Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday raised the issue of special treatment to VVIP houses and asked the Chandigarh administration to explain as to why same quality of construction material is not used for shelter homes as for the houses of bureaucrats, judges etc. The high court division bench of justices Surya Kant and AG Masih summoned the chief engineer of Chandigarh administration for December 11 and asked him to explain why the material used for renovation of houses of senior bureaucrats and other high dignitaries is not used for shelter homes, which in fact are used for residential purpose only.

“For how long a judge or a bureaucrat remains at his home. I hardly use the washroom (at official residence) renovated by the administration in 2010. Why not give such toilets, other facilities to these people, who spend more time at home. These are the people, who need these things more than all of us,” justice Surya Kant said dissatisfied over the renovation being done at an old age home.

The high court scathing remarks comes months after the Rs 1-crore tenders were floated for the renovation of UT adviser Vijay Dev’s Sector-7 official residence. It had resulted in a huge public debate.

The high court was hearing a matter in which it is monitoring the functioning of such shelters in the city including Old Age Home in Sector 15, Bal Niketan, Sector 15 Nari Niketan and other such residential accommodations in the city.

Earlier, amicus curiae in the case advocate Tanu Bedi pointed out that these places lacked basic facilities and renovation was “superficial” and quality of the material used was not upto the mark. It was also pointed out that broken beds, toilets, torn bedding material were common feature in these shelter homes.

“You get it done. Otherwise, I (We) will be forced to pass a judicial order that the kind of material is used in the renovation of judge’s houses, should be used in these homes as well,” the bench observed as UT’s counsel Shekhar Verma tried to explain the renovation being done in such accommodations in the city.