Former Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar is in trouble again. After the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government let her off from paying a rent of Rs 1.96 crore for illegally retaining two palatial houses in the Lutyen's Bungalow area, the new government has slapped her a notice for a rent recovery of Rs 12 lakh.
Kumar owed a rent of Rs 1.96 crore to the government for the bungalow at 6, Krishna Menon Marg. This was allotted to Kumar's father and former deputy prime minister late Jagjivan Ram, who occupied the house till his death in 1986.
After his death, his wife continued to live in the house and Kumar, after she became a Lok Sabha member in 2004.
The former speaker now has to pay a rent of Rs 12 lakh to the Directorate of Estate of possessing two houses. However, when Kumar became speaker, she was allotted 20, Akbar Road as her official residence. Even when she took possession of the Akbar Road house, she continued to occupy 6, Krishna Menon Marg.
Last year, the Directorate of Estate had served a notice to Kumar to pay the rent for the Krishna Menon Marg bungalow. "The then minister Kamal Nath, under pressure from the
party high command, waived the rent. In fact, the directorate was then pulled up for serving such a notice without the consent of the minister," said an official.
The waiver was allowed after certain manipulations in the records. "Despite manipulations, CPWD records suggest that the heirs of Babu Jagjivan Ram occupied the house for more than two years after the death of their parents. Kumar did not surrender the house after she occupied the speaker's bungalow. For that, the family will have to pay the rent," said the officer.
To avoid embarrassment for the speaker, the cabinet committee on accommodation last year decided to convert the house of Jagjivan Ram into a memorial last year. However, there are some pending dues that Kumar has to pay.
The Directorate of Estates has no authority to pressure a former minister to recover the rent. It can only serve a notice. "If a minister has to contest an election, it requires an NOC from our department. NOC will not be given to her till the time she clears her dues. That is the only time we can recover the rent," added the official.
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