Stripped of NSG cover, VIPs to lose palatial houses too

Stripped of NSG cover, VIPs to lose palatial houses too
HARISH GUPTA

NEW DELHI, FEB 21: After being divested of the the National Security Guards (NSG) cover, a dozen-odd VIPs are set to lose their palatial government accommodation as well.

Even those who continue to get NSG cover may not be entitled to a free house any more. Sources say the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is sending a detailed note to the Ministry of Urban Affairs asking it to cancel the allotment of government accommodation to all those who have been provided with it on the grounds of security alone.

The MHA's request is being sent as these VIPs were given accommodation on an out-of-turn basis on its recommendations from time to time.

Six former Union Ministers_H K L Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar, Jagdish Tytler, Arjun Singh, S B Chavan and Matang Singh_who are neither MPs nor hold any position in the government will get eviction notices shortly. Incidentally, they all belong to the Congress and were given government accommodation.

Buta Singh and Rajesh Pilot who have also lost their NSG coverwill, however, continue to retain their houses as they are MPs of the Lok sabha. Pilot may be asked to vacate the ministerial bungalow and move over to a smaller house.

The MHA has also made it clear that even those who continue to get the NSG cover will have to fend for themselves for a stay. Those who fall in this category include former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal, former Youth Congress chief M S Bitta and editor of a leading Hindi daily Ashwini Minna.

The MHA feels that they need not stay in Delhi at government expense for doing their work. If they want to stay here, they will have to hire their private accommodation, goes the argument.

It is, however, not yet clear whether Chief Ministers of some of the terrorist-prone states like Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab who enjoy NSG cover and have been given government accommodation in the Capital, will be asked to surrender the same or not. Jayalalitha and Kalyan Singh continue to get the NSG cover. But they have not been givenhouses.

Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh, Mayawati (Bahujan Samaj Party), and Home Minister L K Advani are under the NSG cover. But they are entitled to government accommodation as MPs.

One of those who gets NSG cover and is not an MP said that the PM's intervention was being sought alleging that the MHA is handling the issue in a ``vindictive'' manner. ``The NSG cover was given as we took some unpleasant decisions. Now it's being made out as if we did all that to enjoy some benefits,'' said a senior politician who is still under the NSG cover.

But the MHA is going ahead. It has also decided that static guards will not be provided to those who do not provide guard room to the security personnel in multi-storyed buildings or their places of stay. It has also been made clear that they will not be given privileges in the name of security such as driving their cars right up to the tarmac at airports.