Beyond permitted period: Supreme Court seeks removal of ex-CJI Chandrachud from official residence 'without further delay'; writes to Centre
NEW DELHI: In an unprecedented move, the Supreme Court administration has written to the Centre seeking possession of the official residence of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) at the Krishna Menon Marg in the national capital.
In a July 1 letter to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), the apex court administration noted that the current occupant of the residence, former CJI DY Chandrachud, has stayed beyond the permissible period.
Justice Chandrachud took over as the country's 50th chief justice in November 2022 and retired two years later. The current CJI, BR Gavai, is the 52nd chief justice, and took over this May.
The Supreme Court administration requested the MoHUA secretary to take possession of Bungalow No.
5, Krishna Menon Marg, "without any further delay," so that returned to the court's housing pool. The permission granted to Chandrachud to retain the accommodation expired on May 31.
Under Rule 3B of the Supreme Court Judges (Amendment) Rules, 2022, a retired Chief Justice of India can retain type VII bungalow, a level below the 5, Krishna Menon Marg bungalow, for a maximum period of six months post-retirement.
Ex-CJI Sanjiv Khanna, who succeeded Justice Chandrachud, chose not to move into the official accommodation during his six months post-retirement tenure.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
새로 나온 "실손보험" 최적가 비교가입! "월 보험료 줄이고, 보장은 실속있게"...
굿리치 [등록번호:제2006038313호]
Undo
Even incumbent CJI BR Gavai opted to continue living in a previously allotted bungalow.
On December 18 last year, Justice Chandrachud had written to then-CJI Khanna, requesting his permission to continue residing in the 5, Krishna Menon Marge residence till April 30, 2025, saying although he has been allotted Bungalow No. 14 on Tughlak Road in accordance with 2022 rules, renovation work at the new residence was going on.
Then-CJI Khanna gave his nod, pursuant to which MoHUA approved the retention of the type VIII bungalow at Krishna Menon Marg by Justice Chandrachud from December 11, 2024, to April 30, 2025 on payment of licence fees of around Rs 5,000 per month.
The ministry conveyed the approval to the Supreme Court administration by a letter of February 13, 2025.
Subsequently, Justice Chandrachud made an oral request to then CJI Khanna to continue residing in the same residence till May 31, 2025, which was also approved by the then CJI with a condition that no further extension would be granted.
The July 1 letter of apex court administration flagged the breach of both the timelines and the legal framework, and said the Krishna Menon Marg residence was permitted due to "special circumstances."
The communication of this nature to the government is a rarity for vacating the official CJI residence that too from an ex-CJI.
According to government sources, in the past, several former CJIs have been informally granted extension to stay in the official residence for a limited time of two months, till they make appropriate arrangements for their accommodation post retirement.
Sources confirm that Justice Chandrachud in his earlier communications has informed the apex court about the delay in moving out of the 5, Krishna Menon Marg residence in view of making the Tughlak Road Bungalow liveable for his family especially his two daughters with special needs, who are undergoing treatment at AIIMS.
Sources also confirm that Justice Chandrachud has written to then CJI Khanna in April informing him that he was in process of shortlisting of an accommodation in accordance with the special needs of his daughters and urged extension of time for vacating the official residence till June 30.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
31 minutes ago
- Time of India
'On wrong side again': BJP attacks Rahul Gandhi's 'obsession' with China military tech; cites previous comments
NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of batting for Chinese military hardware and said that Raebareli MP has a knack for ending up on the wrong side of the patriotic discourse. BJP IT chief Amit Malviya on Monday claimed that in 2021, Rahul Gandhi questioned why Indian forces did not use Chinese-style surveillance drones and even praised the PLA's tactics during the Ladakh standoff. "At an academic interaction in London (2023), he claimed China is winning the 'technology race' and urged India to learn from Chinese military innovation, including drone warfare," Malviya said in a post on X and added that Rahul Gandhi has a curious obsession with Chinese military tech. — amitmalviya (@amitmalviya) "During a 2022 closed-door discussion with defence 'experts', Rahul reportedly pressed for India to 'explore options' similar to China's tactical drone deployment in border areas. Whether it's undermining India's armed forces or amplifying enemy models, Rahul Gandhi has a knack for ending up on the wrong side of the patriotic discourse," he added. Earlier on Monday, Malviya criticised Rahul Gandhi again for spreading fear and incorrect information about the stock market, highlighting that it has generated wealth for numerous retail investors through mutual funds and IPOs. Following SEBI's action against hedge fund Jane Street for alleged index manipulation, Gandhi posted on X, "I clearly stated in 2024 -- the F&O market has become a playground for 'big players', and small investors' pockets are continuously being drained. Now, SEBI itself is admitting that Jane Street manipulated thousands of crores. Why did SEBI remain silent for so long?" BJP IT department head countered that SEBI's ban on a global entity demonstrates robust regulatory measures to protect small investors. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like A failing liver is taking my son away from me! Help him! Donate For Health Donate Now Undo He noted that the investigation itself disproves Gandhi's claims of SEBI's silence. Malviya emphasised that the Modi government's reforms have strengthened SEBI's transparency and independence. He pointed out that major financial scandals occurred during Congress rule, citing Harshad Mehta, Ketan Parekh, and the UTI incident. The BJP representative highlighted India's stock market growth, noting a USD 1 trillion increase in market capitalisation since March 2025. He detailed the mutual fund industry's 576 per cent growth over a decade, with AUM rising from Rs 8 lakh crore to Rs 54 lakh crore. Referring to Gandhi as "Balakbudhhi", Malviya criticised him for spreading market misinformation whilst maintaining his own investment portfolio. He cited increased SIP contributions and successful IPO launches, benefiting ordinary investors. Malviya concluded by questioning Gandhi's understanding of market operations, suggesting that the Congress party's credibility was diminishing while India's markets continued to provide opportunities for millions of new investors under the Modi government's leadership.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
33 minutes ago
- First Post
Why is Bihar electoral roll being revised? What's the uproar over it?
The Supreme Court will on Thursday hear a batch of petitions challenging the Election Commission's order to conduct a Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. The poll body's decision is facing flak, with the opposition questioning the timing of the exercise and raising concerns that it will disenfranchise numerous voters read more The EC has announced a Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls in Bihar. X/@CEOBihar The Election Commission of India's (ECI) decision to conduct a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar just months ahead of the Assembly elections in the state has come under scrutiny. The opposition has raised objections to the exercise, while the poll body has defended the move. The Supreme Court has now decided to hear a bunch of petitions challenging the EC's revision of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. The apex court has, however, not paused the exercise so far. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Let's take a closer look. EC's power to prepare electoral rolls Article 324(1) of the Constitution empowers the Election Commission with the 'superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of the electoral rolls for, and the conduct of' elections to Parliament and state legislatures. The electoral rolls are prepared by the EC as per the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 (RP Act). Section 21(3) of the RP Act states that the ECI 'may at any time… direct a special revision of the electoral roll for any constituency or part of a constituency in such manner as it may think fit'. According to the Registration of Electors' Rules, 1960, the revision of electoral rolls can be carried out 'either intensively or summarily or partly intensively and partly summarily, as the [ECI] may direct'. A fresh electoral roll is drawn up in an intensive revision, while the roll is amended in a summary revision. EC's reasons for intensive revision of voter lists in Bihar On June 24, the Election Commission announced a 'special intensive revision' of the electoral roll in poll-bound Bihar. It asked all existing voters who were not on the electoral rolls in 2003 to provide documentation proving their eligibility by July 26. Justifying its order, the poll body said that 'during the last 20 years significant change in electoral roll has taken place due to additions and deletions on a large scale', and 'rapid urbanisation and frequent migration of population from one place to another… have become a regular trend'. Voters who migrate often 'register themselves at another place without getting their names deleted from the electoral roll of the initial place of residence', which raises the chances of 'repeated entries' in the rolls. The order added that 'thus the situation warrants an intensive verification drive to verify each person before enrolment as an elector.' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The EC also cited its constitutional obligation to ensure non-citizens are not enrolled in the electoral roll. It further said it will conduct a special intensive revision for the entire country. Documents for Bihar voter list revision cause chaos Electors in Bihar whose names are not recorded in the 2003 electoral rolls — an estimated 2.93 crore voters — have been asked by the EC to submit at least one of 11 documents establishing their date and place of birth for themselves and their parents, along with an enumeration form. The accepted documents to establish proof of citizenship are a passport, birth certificate, SC/ST certificate, matriculation or educational certificate issued by recognised boards/universities, permanent residence certificate, family register, forest right certificate and land/house allotment certificate by the government. The EC has excluded Aadhaar and PAN as acceptable documents for the exercise. It said that 'Aadhaar is meant for identity of the person, it is not a valid document for the address proof or date of birth.' Since the EC's order last month, the Block Level Officers (BLOs) have been visiting households with existing voters to get pre-filled forms signed and collect additional documents if needed. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Electors whose enumeration forms are not submitted by July 25 will be removed from the voter list. They can contest their deletion from rolls from August 1 to September 1. The draft electoral rolls, which will be released on August 1, will have the names of people whose enumeration forms have been received. The final draft of the voter list will be published in September. As per the Indian Express report, the EC's move has created confusion on the ground, raising fears the exercise will hit the poor and marginalised the most. It has spread unease among different sections of the voters, including upper castes, Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) and minorities. '(A domicile certificate is) one of the easiest documents to obtain from the Election Commission's list of 11. There is a large number of upper caste people in the queue here… this unnecessary revision is hurting everyone,' Vibhakar Jha, son of Saurath panchayat mukhiya Kamini Devi in Bihar's Madhubani, told the newspaper. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Voters have also questioned the exclusion of Aadhaar among the eligible documents. 'If Aadhaar, PAN, MNREGS cards don't count among the 11 documents the EC wants for enrolment, why were they issued in the first place,' Mohammed Afsar Ali, a daily wager in Purnia's Dhamdaha, asked. Political row over Bihar electoral roll revision The opposition parties, especially in Bihar, have raised concerns about the EC's exercise, questioning its timing and transparency. Rashtriya Janata Dal's (RJD) Tejashwi Yadav, who is also the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, called the revision of electoral polls in the state ahead of Assembly elections a 'conspiracy'. 'The last time the routine process of revision of voter list was done was 2003… it has not happened since. And when it happened in 2003, it took about two years to complete,' he said. Yadav added, 'Now elections are to be held in November. Two months are left before the notification process begins. That means the Election Commission has to make a new list… of 8 crore people… in just 25 days. And that too when 73 per cent of the state is affected by floods!' STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Congress said that the poll body's announcement was a 'clear and explicit admission… that all is not well with India's electoral rolls'. It said in a statement that the electoral roll revision carried the risk of 'willful exclusion' of voters using state machinery. 'Lakhs of Union and state government officials will now control and dictate who has correct documents and who doesn't, who gets to vote in the upcoming Bihar elections etc. This carries a huge risk of willful exclusion of voters using the power of the state machinery,' the party's committee tasked with monitoring elections said. The opposition has expressed concerns that the exercise can potentially disenfranchise electors. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee called the EC's move 'more dangerous than NRC [National Register of Citizens]', alleging that her state, which will go to polls next year, was the real 'target'. Amid uncertainty and backlash, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said Sunday (July 6) that the poll panel had 'invited all recognised political parties for interaction' on the matter and 'no one was satisfied with the current status of electoral rolls for one reason or the other'. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Election Commission also said that the exercise was being organised as per its June 24 order and 'there is no change in the instructions'. The poll panel's clarification came after an advertisement in local newspapers by the office of the Bihar Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) telling voters that they can submit their enumeration forms now and provide the required documents later. 'After publication of draft Electoral Rolls [on August 1], if any document is deficient, EROs (Electoral Registration Officers) can obtain such documents, from the electors whose name appears in the draft Electoral Rolls, during scrutiny in the Claims and Objection period,' the EC clarified. Supreme Court to hear matter Several petitioners including Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Jha, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, poll watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms, rights body People's Union for Civil Liberties, activist Yogendra Yadav and former MLA Mujahid Alam have moved the Supreme Court against the revision of voter lists ahead of Bihar Assembly elections. Just filed writ petition in Supreme Court challenging @ECISVEEP notification to conduct SIR in Bihar & seeking a stay on conducting the same in other states including Bengal — Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) July 5, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Supreme Court on Monday (July 7) agreed to hear the batch of petitions against the EC's order on Thursday. Meanwhile, the poll body has indicated that it is currently not considering extending the deadline for the SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar. 'More than 1/5th of enumeration forms have come back within two days. At this rate, we might complete the exercise before time, so extension of deadline is not a question at the moment," a top ECI official told CNN-News18. With inputs from agencies
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Fadnavis orders probe into tender process for hotel sale involving Shiv Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat's son
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday announced a high-level inquiry into the tender process for the sale of Hotel VITS in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar which involved a company owned by Social Justice Minister and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat's son Siddhant Shirsat. Ambadas Danve, Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, raised a calling attention motion on the now-cancelled tender process. 'A company formed in 2024 was allowed to participate in the bid. The hotel bid was fixed at a 2018 rate which was severely undervalued. The cartelisation of the companies led to the acceptance of a tender of a company that did not have three years of income tax returns as required. Will there be action against the officials and the company that won the tender?' Danve said. Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said, 'We had previously issued six tenders since 2018, but no company came forward. The hotel's value was fixed based on the special MPID (Maharashtra Protection of Investors and Depositors) court.' The VITS hotel was a property of Dhanada Corporation Limited, listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange. In 2016 and 2017, the properties of the company were seized. In a bid to return the money of shareholders, the hotel was put up for auction, but according to the minister, no company responded to the six tenders floated since 2018. Danve said that M/s Siddhant Material Procurement and Supply won the tender at merely Rs 65 crore and that the current valuation of the hotel was around Rs 150 crore. He mentioned that the company's owner, Siddhant Shirsat, is a minister's son but the minister's 2024 election affidavit showed no property owned by his son. Danve was joined by Opposition MLCs Anil Parab, Bhai Jagtap, and Shashikant Shinde in seeking action against officials as well as the company's owner. As Bawankule said the tender process was cancelled and that the new process would take all precautions, the Opposition pressed for the resignation of minister Shirsat. Shirsat presented his side amid sloganeering in the House. 'The entire process has run through court orders. Every tender has been issued after court orders and not by officials. Nobody came forward six times when the tender was issued,' the minister said, adding that all the allegations were false and baseless. As the sloganeering continued, Fadnavis said the revenue minister clarified that the process had been cancelled. 'It is important that such cases should have transparency. Therefore, a high-level inquiry will be conducted to probe whether any irregularity has taken place in the entire process,' he said.
