Mahua Moitra moves Delhi HC against move to oust her from official residence
Directorate of Estates' December 11 order be set aside or, in the alternative, Moitra be allowed to retain possession of the accommodation till the results of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are declared.
Moitra was held guilty of «unethical conduct» and expelled from the Lok Sabha on December 8, 2023 for allegedly accepting gifts from businessman Darshan Hiranandani and sharing her user ID and password of the Parliament website with him.
She has already challenged her expulsion in the Supreme Court after the Lok Sabha adopted the report of its ethics committee recommending her ouster.
The case is listed for hearing on January 3, 2024.
In her plea before the high court, she said the Directorate of Estates' order has been issued following her expulsion from the Lok Sabha.
«The impugned order is premature as the validity of the petitioner's expulsion is pending adjudication before the Supreme Court of India,» Moitra's petition said.
«In such circumstances — where whether the petitioner is an 'unauthorised occupant' at all is under adjudication before the highest constitutional court of the land — the respondent no. 1 (Directorate of Estates), as an executing authority, cannot initiate proceedings under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act 1971 for evicting the petitioner.
»It is only once the petitioner's claim over rightfully occupying the government accommodation is duly adjudicated, does the question of the estate office's/ respondent no.
