The Estates department that looks after more than 4,000 official quarters in Srinagar and Jammu has failed to provide information about outstanding rent with occupants of the estates property, an RTI application has revealed.
In response to an RTI application filed by MM Shuja, the department has claimed that the “information asked needs to be worked out and is voluminous. You may ask for any specific accommodation or check the record if you wish to do so.”
Shuja had, apart from the outstanding rent, also sought to know details of accommodation under unauthorised occupation of political activists, serving and former employees, particulars of accommodation allotted to persons having threat perceptions and enjoying security cover, particulars of accommodation allotted to private persons/ mediapersons/journalists and non-state subjects; private houses and hotels acquired by the Estates department for official purposes with details of occupants thereof; details and particulars of expenditure incurred by the department for maintenance, renovation, and furnishing of premises under the possession of UN office at Sonwar Srinagar and details of the rent outstanding.
In response to the RTI application, the department has said that, at present, it is providing accommodation to more than 180 persons including political activists, serving and former employees, journalists and other individuals.
36 political activists and former legislators, the RTI states, are occupying the government accommodation. Of these, 15 cases are sub-judice. Also, 46 MLAs and 12 MLCs have been provided accommodation by the department.
The RTI states that seven persons have been unauthorizedly occupying the estates property. Of these, the department has been successful in evicting one. The highest number of 75 quarters belonging to the Estates department has been provided to the media persons, and seven quarters to “private persons.”
About accommodation to persons having threat perception and enjoying security cover, the department has said that the information can be had from security wing of the J&K police.