Ministry of Urban Development serves second notice to Moitra to vacate govt house

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Urban Development served a second notice to Trinamool Congress' leader Mahua Moitra to vacate the government house, sources said on Thursday. According to the sources, Mahua Moitra has to reply to this notice by January 16.

Recently, the Directorate of Estate, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, asked Moitra to vacate her official bungalow, shortly after she was expelled from the Lok Sabha in connection with the 'cash-for-query' case. Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Mahua Moitra had knocked on the doors of the Delhi High Court, seeking the quashing of the notice issued by the Directorate of Estate canceling her government accommodation of Delhi.

The plea stated that a notice had been issued to her on December 11, 2023, which directed her to vacate the house by 7.01.2024, failing which proceedings under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants Act) 1971 ('PP Act 1971') will be caused to be initiated. The plea prayed to allow her to retain possession of her government accommodation till the results of the 2024 General Elections.

It also stated that the absence of government accommodation, however, poses a significant impediment to the petitioner's ability to host and engage with party members, parliamentarians, fellow politicians, visiting constituents, key stakeholders and other dignitaries, which is essential, especially in the lead up to a general election.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on January 3 asked the Secretary General of Lok Sabha to file a response to a plea of Trinamool Congress Party (TMC) leader Mahua Moitra challenging her expulsion from Lok Sabha in a cash-for-query case. Moitra was on December 8, 2023, expelled from the Lok Sabha after a discussion on the report of the Ethics Committee in the 'cash for query' that was tabled in the Lower House.

Moitra, who was not allowed to speak during the discussion inside the House, said that the Ethics committee broke every rule. The expelled Lok Sabha MP alleged that she has been found guilty of breaching a code of ethics that 'does not exist'. The Ethics Committee report probing 'Unethical Conduct' of the TMC MP had recommended that Moitra "may be expelled" from the Lok Sabha and called for an "intense, legal, institutional inquiry" by the central government in a "time-bound manner". The report was adopted by a 6:4 majority in the panel last month.

The report on Moitra's cash-for-query case revealed that she visited the UAE four times from 2019 to 2023 while her login was accessed several times.