New Delhi, September 25 (Udaipur Kiran News) — The Centre on Thursday informed the Delhi High Court that former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal will be allotted a government bungalow in the national capital within 10 days.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, made this statement before Justice Sachin Datta’s bench during a hearing on AAP’s petition seeking official accommodation for Kejriwal. In a sharp remark, Mehta said that “aam aadmi (common people) do not fight for bungalows.”

Earlier, on 18 September, the High Court had observed that the decision to provide Kejriwal with a government residence could not be left to administrative discretion. The court had also summoned the Directorate of Estates under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

During the hearing, the Centre’s counsel informed that while AAP had proposed allocating the Type-8 bungalow at 35, Lodhi Estate, for Kejriwal’s use, the same house had already been allotted on 24 July to Union Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary.

On 16 September, the High Court had pulled up the Centre for delaying a decision on Kejriwal’s housing demand, observing that the government seemed uncertain about whom to allot accommodation.

Senior advocate Rahul Mehra, representing AAP, argued that under the guidelines for allotment of government accommodation to political parties, the head of any recognised party without an official residence is entitled to a government house in Delhi. He stressed that Kejriwal, as AAP’s national convenor, met all the eligibility requirements.

The petition pointed out that Kejriwal vacated his official residence on 4 October 2024 after resigning as Chief Minister. AAP had written to the administration on 20 September 2024, and several times thereafter, seeking allotment of a government house, but no action was taken. The petition also recalled that the High Court had earlier directed allotment of an office space to AAP as a recognised political party.