Mahua Moitra says she's hospitalised, urges Delhi HC to issue directions against eviction from govt bungalow

New Delhi: Citing medical reasons, expelled Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra on Thursday urged the Delhi High Court to restrain the authorities from evicting her from the government bungalow on cancellation of allotment following her expulsion.

The Trinamool Congress leader, who has challenged a notice by the Directorate of Estates (DoE) to vacate the government accommodation, pleaded not to throw her out of the premises for the time being as she is a single woman and is undergoing treatment at a hospital here.

Justice Girish Kathpalia, who heard the counsel for Moitra and DoE at length, said he will dictate the order today.

Senior advocate Brij Gupta, representing Moitra, submitted she has undergone a surgical procedure and is admitted to a private hospital. Doctors have advised her rest, the lawyer said and urged the court to give her some time to vacate the bungalow, preferably four months.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma and central government's standing counsel Anurag Ahluwalia, representing the DoE, opposed the plea saying there was no whisper of any medical or humanitarian condition in her representation to the authorities.

During the hearing, Moitra’s counsel said she was ready to pay the charges to the authorities but she should not be thrown out of the premises at this stage.

“Whatever you wish to charge, I am ready to pay. Don’t throw me out. I have a medical condition. I am being treated at Medanta Hospital here and was in ICU. I have no other house in Delhi. Treat it as my mercy petition. I am pleading for mercy,” the counsel submitted on her behalf and added that Moitra was the first woman to be expelled from Parliament.

On being asked as to how much time she requires to vacate the property, Gupta said four months would be ideal, but if the court feels it is too much, even two or two and a half months would be fine.

He said Moitra was ready to give an undertaking to vacate the premises in four months.

“You say you are ill and you need some time, on these grounds... Why four months? Why not three days to vacate? My thought is if you would have said three days, four days or a week, they would have looked into it,” the judge said.

Moitra’s counsel said courts have considered humanitarian aspects in matters like these and allowed people to stay on in government accommodations.

The DoE counsel said 2,188 people are waiting for an identical accommodation.

“She says her party may give her the ticket to contest from the constituency again. I will not comment much on this. It is not that you have chosen to completely extricate yourself from the main issue that is your expulsion... You were allotted this house as an MP and today you are not an MP,” the law officer argued.

The government counsel contended that despite her prayer for interim relief like a stay on her expulsion, the Supreme Court has consciously chosen not to do so.

Moitra counsel said her prayer before the Supreme Court was not related to accommodation but her explusion from the Lok Sabha.

“Today, she is on bed rest, she can't even move in bed. It is in that situation that they want to evict her,” the lawyer said, adding security personnel are waiting to throw her out.

As the court sought to know why Moitra's representation did not mention her medical condition, the lawyer said the first representation was given before the diagnosis and surgery. He said the second representation contains all these grounds.

The notice asking Moitra to vacate the bungalow immediately was issued to her on January 16.

Moitra, who was expelled from the Lok Sabha on December 8 last year, was earlier asked to vacate the house by January 7 after the allotment was cancelled.

She was held guilty of 'unethical conduct' and expelled from the House for allegedly accepting gifts and other favours from businessman Darshan Hiranandani in return for asking questions targeting his business rival Gautam Adani.