Illegal occupation: SC notice to Buta Singh, ex-Delhi top cop

The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notices to former Bihar governor Buta Singh, ex-Delhi Police Commissioner Y S Dadwal along with many other serving and retired bureaucrats and Indian Police Service officers for unauthorised occupation of government bungalows in the national capital.

A bench of justices G S Singhvi and S J Mukhopadhaya directed all the illegal occupants to explain on December 5 why they should not be evicted.

"Time has come for intervention. Let notice be issued to all who are unauthorisedly occupying government accommodations," the bench said.

It asked the Centre to publish public notice in an English and a Hindi newspaper incorporating names of all unauthorised occupants, which also included some journalists.

"We are prima facie satisfied that that they(unauthorised occupants) do not have legal and constitutional rights to occupy the premises after their retirement," the bench said  after going through the list of unauthorised occupants placed before it by the Centre.

The list contains names of more than 150 people who are illegally occupying different types of government accommodation in the city. It also contains the name of members of various commissions.

The bench, after going through the list expressed surprise over the failure on the part of government in removing the unauthorised occupants some of them have been illegally occupying the premises for more than ten years.

Image: Former Bihar governor Buta Singh