Original allottees to get houses after 17 years

LUCKNOW: After waiting for 17 long years, the original allottees of the Lucknow Development Authority’s Basant Kunj housing scheme will be given possession of their houses from Saturday.

The decision to regularise the possession of the houses to its original allottees came after the development authority faced a rap by the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Wednesday.

Till now, out of 1006 houses constructed under the scheme in two phases, 830 are in illegal possession and only 176 are in possession of the original allottees.

The housing scheme, launched by the LDA in 20012002 at Hardoi road for weaker section of the society, has been courting controversy since its launch. Pushpa Devi, an original allottee, had filed a writ petition in Lucknow high court in 2014 to seek possession of house.

Hearing the petition, a bench of Justice DK Upadhyay and Justice RN Pandey on Wednesday directed LDA vice-chairman PN Singh, district magistrate and the senior superintendent of police to ensure the possession of houses to its original allottees.

To start with, 16 original allottees, who recently approached the LDA, will be given the possession of their houses.

“In presence of police, 16 illegal occupants will be evicted from their houses on Saturday and the original allottees will be given possession,” said Vishwa Bhushan Mishra, nazul officer, LDA.

Pushpa Devi will also be given possession of her house on Saturday, said the LDA officer.

“In every 15 days, original allottees will be given possession of their houses. Most of the original allottees are untraceable. The LDA did not find them at the addresses they had given at the time of the allotment,” added Mishra.

“We will advertise in newspapers so that the original allottees could approach us with the allotment papers to get the possession of their houses,” he said.

The LDA has to apprise the court on July 25 about the steps it has taken to ensure the possession of the houses to its original allottees.

To recall, the LDA in its board meeting on October 24, 2016, had decided to regularise the possession of the illegal occupants of these houses. But, the high court took serious note of the matter.

During one of the proceedings, the court had observed, “We are unable to comprehend as to under what circumstances and for what reasons, the board of the Lucknow Development Authority has taken this decision to regularise the possession of illegal occupants under a scheme made for shelter-less and homeless persons.”

However, present vice chairman of LDA, PN Singh revoked the board’s decision earlier this year and decided to ensure the possession of houses to its original allottees.