Hearing a contempt petition against some of the state’s former chief ministers for non-payment of dues, the Uttarakhand high court on Tuesday issued a show cause notice to Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari.
The court has directed Koshyari to submit his response regarding non-compliance of its earlier order on payment of dues. The former chief minister’s counsel, BD Upadhyay, said, “We will reply to the notice within four weeks.”
On May 3, 2019, the court had directed four former CMs to pay within six months the market rent — amounting to Rs 2.8 crore — for the buildings occupied by them. It had also directed that all amount payable towards amenities, such as electricity, water and petrol, be recalculated within four months and the same be intimated to the former chief ministers who shall, within six months, pay said amount to the state government.
The court had delivered the order after hearing a PIL filed by Dehradun-based NGO, Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra, that challenged free residence, car, security and other perks to former chief ministers in 2010.
The single bench of Justice Sharad Sharma heard the contempt petition filed against Koshyari on Tuesday. “We apprised the court that the petition is fully maintainable even if the respondent is a sitting Governor. We have completed the requirement provided under Article 361(4) of the Constitution of India and already given sixty days’ notice to Koshyari before filing the present contempt petition. The court heard the matter and issued notice to Koshyari, granting him four weeks to reply to the same,” said the petitioner’s counsel.
According to Article 361(4) of Constitution of India, “any civil proceedings in which relief is claimed against the President, or the Governor of a State, shall be instituted during his term of office in any court in respect of any act done or purporting to be done by him in his personal capacity, whether before or after he entered upon his office as President, or as Governor of such State, until the expiration of two months next after notice in writing has been delivered to the President or Governor.”
The other three former chief ministers from whom the court had sought a response earlier in September this year are Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, Vijay Bahuguna and Bhuvan Chand Khanduri. While Nishank’s matter was heard recently, Bahuguna and Khanduri have filed special leave petitions in the Supreme Court.
