HC issues notice to Punjab over Ravneet Bittu’s plea against Rs 1.83 crore rent demand
The Punjab and Haryana High Court today issued notice of motion to the state of Punjab and other respondents on a petition filed by Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu, challenging a demand for Rs 1,82,98,924 as rent/penal rent for government accommodation allotted in Ludhiana on security grounds. The rent is for the period from January 1, 2016 to May 19, 2024.
In his petition placed before Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi’s bench, Bittu sought quashing of the order requiring payment of the “hefty” amount to obtain a no dues certificate, essential for contesting the parliamentary election from Ludhiana in June last year.
Bittu – grandson of Punjab’s former chief minister Beant Singh, contended that the accommodation was granted due to a high-security threat perception following his grandfather’s assassination. He argued that penal rent could not be imposed when the allotment was based on security concerns. He added the respondents had no jurisdiction to demand any house rent for the accommodation allotted to the petitioner because it was their own arrangement for the safety and security of the petitioner and his family in the face of consistent threat perception. Taking up the matter, Justice Sethi fixed May 5 as the next date of hearing.