Should former PM's, Presidents vacate allotted homes? Supreme Court to decide soon

Soon, two former Presidents and three former Prime Ministers of the country could lose their plush official bungalows that were allotted to them after demitting the top posts. The Supreme Court (SC) is currently hearing a public interest litigation that has challenged allotment of houses to ex-Chief Ministers in plus bungalows and Gopal Subramanium, the amicus curiae in the case, has told the SC that people in top positions should be treated as ordinary citizens once they demit office.

If the SC heeds this opinion, then former Presidents Pranab Mukherjee and Pratibha Patil and former Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and HD Deve Gowda would have to vacate their bungalows. The PIL was filed last year by non-profit organisation Lok Prahari, challenging amendments by a Uttar Pradesh legislation that allowed ex-Chief Ministers of the state to continue living in high-profile bungalows.

Last August, a SC bench of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Navin Sinha appointed ex-solicitor general senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam as amicus curiae to assist the court in the matter. Subramanium had said that those occupying the office of President, PM or CM cease to be an occupant of that public office once they demit office and thus should be shorn of all its adornments. He had also argued that providing special privileges goes against Article 14 of the Constitution.

The SC will hear the matter on January 16.