The Congress has remained in "unauthorised occupation" of its former headquarters at 24, Akbar Road since June 26, 2013, and the government has not received any rent for the property during this period, according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply accessed by India Today. The Centre also stated that the party's outstanding dues are "under review and yet to be determined."
According to the RTI response issued by the Directorate of Estates under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Bungalow No. 24, Akbar Road in Lutyens' Delhi was allotted to the Congress on August 7, 1992. However, the allotment was cancelled with effect from June 26, 2013, after which the property has remained under the party's unauthorised occupation.
No rent received since 2013
In its response, the Directorate of Estates said no rent has been received from the Congress for 24, Akbar Road since June 26, 2013. It added that the party's outstanding dues are still under review and have not yet been determined, indicating that the government is yet to calculate the amount recoverable.
The RTI applicant had also sought copies of notices, if any, asking the Congress to vacate the bungalow. However, the Directorate declined to provide the documents, stating that the records are not maintained in a compiled format and that compiling them would disproportionately divert the resources of the public authority under Section 7(9) of the RTI Act.
The latest disclosure comes in the backdrop of an earlier RTI reply accessed by India Today in 2018, in which the Directorate of Estates had said the licence fee for 24, Akbar Road was revised to Rs 3,920 per month with effect from July 1, 2017. That response also included the 2013 cancellation letter issued to the Congress and noted that the party's request to retain the bungalow while continuing to pay the normal licence fee was under consideration.
BJP dues also under review
The recent RTI application also sought details regarding 11, Ashoka Road, the former headquarters of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Lutyens' Delhi. The Directorate of Estates confirmed that the bungalow was allotted to the BJP on March 21, 1985.
However, it stated that the property is now part of the Lok Sabha Members' Pool, and queries related to rent collection and the entity paying rent have been transferred to the Lok Sabha Secretariat.
The RTI response further said that any outstanding dues payable by the BJP to the government are also under review and have yet to be determined.
An RTI reply accessed by India Today in 2019 had stated that 11, Ashoka Road continued to remain in the BJP's possession as its party office. Another RTI response, filed in 2018, had also noted that the prescribed licence fee for the bungalow had been revised to Rs 3,920 per month with effect from July 1, 2017.
