HC asks govt to reply on facilities to ex-CMs

Times of India: Nainital: Thursday, 03 December 2015.

The Uttarakhand high court on Wednesday ordered the state government to file an affidavit confirming state government counsel's statement that all facilities being provided to former chief ministers of the state at the cost of public money have been withdrawn. The HC has given the government time till December 15 to file its reply. The ruling came after a PIL was filed alleging over expenditure on the part of the state government for facilities to ex-CMs of the state.

"The state government had said that all such facilities have been withdrawn. The HC has ordered the government to file an affidavit regarding the claims," said Kartikiya Hari Gupta, advocate for the petitioner.

The order dated December 2, 2015 also says that it shall be clarified in the affidavit as to whether the UP Rules of 1997 about residences provided to the ex-CMs were ever adapted in the state of Uttarakhand as per Section 87 of the UP Reorganization Act. Earlier also, there has been a lot of furore about former CMs misusing public money for their personal comfort. A RTI query by a Haldwani-based activist in June, this year revealed that former CMs have spent more than Rs 2.23 crore only on fuel and maintenance of their vehicles since remitting their offices.