Days after the Bihar Election concluded, a new controversy is starting to ignite after former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi and her son, JJD chief Tej Pratap Yadav, were directed to vacate their official residences.
The NDA-led government insisted that the decision has been made strictly “as per the rules”, while the Opposition has sharply criticised the move, reported IANS.
The Nitish Kumar-led Government that won the election on November 14 has asked Rabri Devi to vacate residence located at 10 Circular Road, where she has lived for nearly two decades.
The former Bihar Chief Minister has currently been allotted House No 39 on Harding Road. Meanwhile, Tej Pratap Yadav has been instructed to vacate his accommodation at 26 M Strand Road, IANS reported. As per reports, the house in which the JJD chief currently resides has been reassigned to SC/ST Welfare Minister Lakhendra Kumar Roshan.
Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha, while speaking to the media on Wednesday, said, “The department responsible for this work is carrying it out. Whenever a new government comes, changes occur, and this is happening according to the same procedure.”
Furthermore, Minister Nitin Nabin also described the reallocation as a routine “government procedure”. “MLAs are allotted accommodation as per the category they fall under. There is no issue here that requires a response from me,” he added.
Along with other leaders, state BJP chief and Minister Dilip Jaiswal also reiterated that the government was following established norms, IANS reported.
“When officers retire, they immediately vacate their government bungalows, so why are politicians so attached to government residences? They should accept the arrangements that the government has made for them,” Jaiswal asserted while talking to the media.
Rabri Devi, Bihar`s first woman chief minister, who held office from 1997 to 2005 after Lalu Prasad Yadav stepped down due to an arrest warrant in the fodder scam, has been serving as Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council since 2018. On the other hand, Tej Pratap Yadav, who lost the Mahua Assembly seat, does not currently hold any official position in the Bihar Assembly.
JD(U) National Spokesperson Rajeev Ranjan, while expressing his views in this matter, said, “This is a prescribed procedure. The Central Government, from time to time, allocates residences according to position. In Rabri Devi`s capacity, she has been granted approval for a new residence. Tej Pratap is not a member of any house, so he will have to vacate the accommodation.”
(With inputs from IANS)