
Samajwadi Party misused power to occupy office space for Rs 115: SC
New Delhi, Jul 21 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday rapped the Samajwadi Party for 'fraudulently occupying" office space for a paltry Rs 115 in Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit, underlining a 'clear misuse of political power".
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi told senior advocate Siddharth Dave, appearing for the political party, that it was not a case of fraudulent allotment but a case of 'fraudulent occupation using muscle power and misusing power".
The top court was acting on the party's plea against Nagarpalika Parishad of Pilibhit's eviction order.
Dave argued despite paying rent for the office space, the municipal authorities were adamant to evict his client.
He said a suit seeking injunction on the eviction order had been filed.
'You are a political party. You misused official position and political power to occupy the space. When action comes, you start remembering everything. Have you ever heard of office space in a municipal area for Rs 115 rent. This is a clear case of abuse of power," the bench noted.
When Dave pressed for protection from eviction for six weeks, the bench said, 'Right now, you are an unauthorised occupant. These are not fraudulent allotments but fraudulent occupations." Dave claimed the party was being singled out by the authorities.
'It will be better if you file a writ petition before the high court and bring to the court's notice any such fraudulent allotment or occupation. We will be welcoming this step," the bench said.
Refusing to examine the plea, the bench did not express any opinion on the petitioner's suit in the civil court which it said should be decided at the earliest.
The party was challenging the July 2 order of the Allahabad High Court refusing to hear the plea.
On June 16, the top court dismissed a similar plea moved by the party's Pilibhit district president against the high court order restraining him from filing a fresh petition on the issue of eviction order for local party office.
The top court granted liberty to the party to move the high court against the decision of the civic body.
The apex court pointed out a 998-day delay in filing the appeal against the December 1, 2020 order of the high court on the plea of one Anand Singh Yadav who claimed to be the party's district president.
The party had claimed that the civic body ordered it to vacate the premises on November 12, 2020 without offering it the opportunity to be heard. PTI MNL MNL AMK AMK
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI) view comments
First Published:
July 21, 2025, 18:45 IST
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
Centre increases monthly incentive of ASHAs to 3,500
T'puram: Bringing partial relief to the protesting ASHAs in Kerala, the Centre increased their fixed monthly incentive from Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,500. The revised incentive was approved at the mission steering group meeting held on March 4, and was formally communicated in the Lok Sabha by minister of state for health and family welfare Prataprao Jadhav, in response to a question raised by Kollam MP N K Premachandran. According to a statement from the MP's office, the minister also announced that the retirement benefit for ASHAs with a minimum of 10 years of service was raised from Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000. The eligibility norms for receiving incentives were restructured, and additional project-based performance incentives will continue. The Centre clarified that while it extends technical and financial support, the primary responsibility to improve the service conditions and remuneration of ASHAs lies with the state govts. The minister's reply was part of a broader response to questions concerning the ongoing protest by ASHAs in Kerala, who have been camping in front of Secretariat demanding a hike in the state share of their honorarium and a retirement benefit of Rs 5 lakh. So far, the state govt has not responded positively to their demands. The Centre informed Parliament that under the Ayushman Arogya Mandir programme, an additional Rs 1,000 is given monthly to ASHAs. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like They Were So Beautiful Before; Now Look At Them; Number 10 Will Shock You Reportingly Undo It also highlighted provisions such as uniforms, ID cards, mobile phones, CUG SIMs, bicycles, ASHA diaries, drug kits and rest rooms being made available to workers in many parts of the country. According to the statement, despite these central provisions, disparities in state-level incentives remain wide. Maharashtra and Sikkim provide the highest monthly payments at Rs 10,000, followed by Andhra Pradesh with Rs 7,200, and both Kerala and Puducherry at Rs 7,000. Telangana pays Rs 6,750, Haryana Rs 6,100, Himachal Pradesh Rs 5,500 and West Bengal Rs 5,250. Karnataka offers Rs 5,000 while Rajasthan pays Rs 4,500, Madhya Pradesh Rs 4,000, Odisha Rs 3,500 and several northeastern and Union Territories pay between Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,500. The lowest honorariums are reported from Andaman and Nicobar Islands and some areas in Delhi, where workers receive as little as Rs 500. Premachandran urged the state govt to act urgently and match the Centre's efforts. He said that while the Centre stepped up its role, it was ultimately the state's responsibility to ensure fair wages, service benefits, and dignity for frontline health workers who form the backbone of the rural public health system.


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Poll panel appoints secretary general of RS as returning officer for election of VP
Election Commission on Friday appointed the secretary general of the Rajya Sabha as the returning officer for election to the office of vice-president. This was done in consultation with ministry of law and justice and with consent of deputy chairman of RS. The poll panel also appointed Garima Jain and Vijay Kumar, joint secretary and director respectively in RS secretariat, as assistant returning officers. The V-P election has been necessitated due to the post falling vacant upon resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar. EC had earlier said it had started pre-announcement activities, after the completion of which it would announce the election schedule "as soon as possible". Election Commission conducts election to the office of vice-president as per its mandate under Article 324, and in line with Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952 and the rules made under the Act. As per convention, either secretary general, Lok Sabha or secretary general, Rajya Sabha is appointed as returning officer by rotation. During the last Vice-Presidential election, the secretary general of the Lok Sabha was appointed as the returning officer. Gazette notifications regarding the appointment of the returning officer and assistant returning officer for vice-presidential election 2025 were issued on Friday.


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
I've proved my academic management skill in past 5.5 years: LU VC Prof Alok Kumar Rai
Days after he was appointed as the director of Institute of Management–Calcutta (IIM–C), Lucknow University VC Prof Alok Kumar Rai said that he was selected purely on merit, and not due to some political connection. Reacting to concerns shown by some faculty members of IIM–C on his appointment, Rai cited his accomplishments as LU VC and clarified that the post of director calls for supervising the academic management and not teaching. "I will have to supervise academic management, which I have proved I am good at during 5.5 years of my tenure as LU VC," he told TOI's Mohita Tewari in a free-wheeling interview. Excerpts... You are set to head a top B-school amid criticism from a section of academic fraternity, which call your appointment a political one. They also talk about your non-IIM background, and your lack of experience in handling the IIM system. It's not at all a political appointment but a procedural one. All laid down procedures have been adhered to. Also, as such there is no 'criticism' but some disagreements or differences in opinion, which are always welcomed. I haven't applied for a professorial position there; IIM-C is an academic administration. You will have to evaluate me based on my competence of being able to perform as an academic administrator of the institute. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like How Much Does It Cost to Rent a Private Jet - The Prices May Surprise You! Private Jet I Search Ads Learn More Undo The criteria should be: 'Will I be able to deliver the same way as I have done at LU. One should assess me on the basis of what I can; I have a list of accomplishments as an academic administrator. During your term as VC, there were allegations that despite LU being a NAAC A++ University, it struggled with poor infrastructure, and your achievements were more about marketing. LU has very limited resources. Till date, our priority is to pay salaries to our teaching and non-teaching staff; pay off electricity bills and clear Nagar Nigam dues. Despite facing a severe financial crunch, there has been a lot of infrastructure augmentation. Our second campus revamp gives a feel of a new campus while at our old campus we have also improved our infrastructure with whatever money we had and from whatever sources we could arrange. No system is foolproof. Whenever we track progress, we track it from base value -- where we were and where we have reached. We couldn't work for Lal Baradari and the Canning college building which houses several arts faculty departments. We had plans to revamp it with help of Rs 100 crore sanctioned under Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PM USHA), but the grant is yet to be received. University Grants Commission (UGC) grants LU a category 1 status, which is given to only those that demonstrate high academic standards and are recognized for their quality and performance. Still, there are allegations that professors are not taking classes, and teaching is dependent on research scholars When I joined LU as VC, there was a system of guest faculty/subject experts who were taking classes in most of the departments due to lack of teachers. They would take one class of one hour someday and skip it on other days. They had no responsibility. This system was changed, and we recruited self-financed teachers after a rigorous recruitment drive. Assistant professors recruited since 2021 are known for taking regular classes. In academic institutions, one can't stand with a stick to make professors teach… What have been the major accomplishments in the past 5.5 years of your tenure? I believe as a VC I have strengthened the academic ecosystem and have done research rejuvenation. Now teachers publish research work they take pride in, communicate to social media, talk about the impact factor to the media. When I joined, most of the teachers were not aware of the H index, a metric used to assess the scientific productivity and impact of an individual researcher or a group of researchers of the university. Today, the H index of LU has increased by almost 50%, which proves that there is a research culture inculcation. Today, when most universities are thinking of implementing National Education Policy, our UG four-year NEP students have graduated, and we are pursuing one year PG under NEP. Today, we have assistant professors who have brought projects worth crores in just one year, teachers with fellowship and awards, which reflects quality recruitment. Also, we have built a highly responsive system, even a complaint on X by a student is attended to and resolved in no time. How do you see your new responsibility in comparison with your present term as state vice chancellor. When are you joining IIM-C? I am supposed to join IIM-C before Aug 15. I am really excited to take up this new responsibility. In comparison to LU, IIM-C will be a place where I don't expect to face trivial issues. The kind of challenges there would be of different nature, like placement records.