Video Editor: Sandeep Suman
Six former chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh recently had to give up on their government bungalows, and an NGO called Lokprahari was behind the eviction. Their team generally remains under covers. This is the story of their 14-year struggle.
The Fight Started in 2014
There was a stir in UP after the the Supreme Court order ordered six former Chief Ministers to vacate their official bungalows. All this was only achieved after the long battle taken on by Lokprahari.
The organisation consists of former IAS, IPS and judges, and it has been raising issues related to public interest.
Lokprahari filed a petition for the first time in 2004 regarding government bungalows. This petition was against the rule of 1997, under which arrangements were made to provide government accommodation to former Chief Ministers.
Lokprahari Secretary General SN Shukla told The Quint:
We filed our first petition in 2004 and the verdict was given in our favour in 2016. To overrule the verdict, the then Akhilesh government amended the Act so that the former Chief Ministers could keep their bungalows. We also challenged the amendment in the Supreme Court. But after the Supreme Court order, they had to vacate the bungalow.SN Shukla, General Secretary, Lokprahari
Lokprahari president and retired IAS officer Nitin Majumdar says that it is now time that even former prime ministers and presidents vacate their government bungalows.
But even before this verdict, Lokprahari had contributed in making many major decisions happen. For example, in 2013, they had filed a petition after which RJD’s Lalu Prasad Yadav along with three MPs were disqualified for being convicts, overturning a 62-year-old provision.
(This story was published on Quint Hindi).
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