Amid bungalow search, Delhi CM Rekha Gupta’s visit to Sessions House sparks concern among city judicial officers

NEW DELHI: Chief minister Rekha Gupta's recent visit to the iconic Sessions House, a beautiful bungalow located in north Delhi's Civil Lines area, has led to concerns among the judicial officers in the national capital.Gupta is currently searching for a suitable govt accommodation for herself. She visited the British-era bungalow, located at 2 North End Road, on May 22. The sprawling structure has been allotted to the principal district and sessions judge, Tis Hazari Court, and is undergoing renovation."The Sessions House bungalow is like a holy site for the judiciary. District judiciary shouldn't be treated like this. This house has a legacy which should be respected and preserved," said a senior judge from the district courts.Sessions House is built on an area of over two acres and has a separate hall for seminars and judicial functions, a residential complex with six rooms, separate servant quarters, and lawns.According to a senior Delhi govt official, CM Gupta has considered several govt bungalows over the past few weeks and no decision on the house she might pick for her official residence has been taken so far.While Gupta's predecessor, Atishi, lived in the AB-17, Mathura Road bungalow during her short stint as chief minister, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal was allotted a sprawling house located at 6, Flagstaff Road in Civil Lines area. Gupta has already refused to move in the same bungalow owing to the controversy around it for alleged extravagance on its renovation when Kejriwal was CM.Former chief minister Sheila Dikshit spent most of her 15 years in office at 3, Motilal Nehru Marg, which was later allotted to former PM Manmohan Singh. Currently, his family lives in the same bungalow."There is also a belief that 33, Shamnath Marg is jinxed, as Madanlal Khurana and Sahib Singh Verma lost their positions as CMs during their stay in that bungalow. That is why Sheila Dikshit decided to live in the Motilal Nehru Marg bungalow," a source said.According to officials, there is a severe shortage of govt accommodation for judicial officers in the city. In March, the department of law and justice, Delhi govt, received a request through representation by the Judicial Service Association of Delhi (JSAD) seeking the return of four flats taken by govt for the expansion of former CM Kejriwal's official residence at 6, Flagstaff Road. These flats are still lying vacant but are in a dilapidated condition.On April 22, Delhi govt's Public Works Department informed the law department that in lieu of the flats taken away from the judicial pool, four flats had been allocated at a different location.The JSAD representation pointed out that against the sanctioned strength of 897 judicial officers, only 348 residences are available, leaving a shortfall of 549 residences. At present, there are only three residential complexes for district judges in Delhi — the Karkardooma Court Complex (55 units), Saket Court Complex (128 units) and Rohini Court Complex (48 units). Another 117 units have been allocated from the judicial pool in govt colonies such as Model Town, Timarpur and Civil Lines.The association has already filed a petition in this regard in Delhi High Court, highlighting the abysmal condition of accommodations for judges. The plea states that the house rent allowance (HRA) provided by govt to judicial officers in Delhi is "grossly inadequate"."At present, the HRA is 27% of the basic pay of judicial officers. The amount… is grossly inadequate when compared to the market trend, and it is impracticable for several judicial officers (especially up to J-5 level) to rent out suitable and appropriate accommodations in the areas surrounding court premises," the plea says, pointing out that judicial officers also have their families to support."As a result, the majority of the lower-level judicial officers have to take properties situated in Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad, which causes them huge difficulty in commuting between court and their residence," says the petition.