Officials look for bungalows for Bihar’s new ministers
PATNA: With the swearing-in of the Grand Alliance government done and dusted, hunt has now begun to find lavish bungalows for the new state ministers, including one each for Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s sons Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, who is Bihar’s deputy chief minister and health minister Tej Pratap Yadav.
Sources revealed that the elevation of the two Yadav scions as number two and three in the government has entitled them to bigger bungalows.
Speculation was rife that Tejashwi in his capacity as the deputy chief minister could be allotted the 7 Circular Road residence in case chief minister Niitsh Kumar vacates it to move back to the official CM residence at 1 Aney Marg, which has already been spruced up.
Lalu’s elder son, Tej Pratap is also likely to get a big house as per his choice.
Grapevine has it that both of Lalu’s sons would prefer accommodation close to their parents’ residence at 10 Circular Road but it would depend on the availability of bungalows.
“We will have a meeting with the ministers, including the deputy chief minister to know their preferences. If they have any specific choice, we would try to accommodate them as far as possible,” a senior officer of the building construction department said on the condition of anonymity.
Sources said the allotment of bungalows to the new incumbents in the cabinet would take at least two to three months as the bungalows in the pool of the building construction are still occupied by the ministers of the previous Janta Dal( United) government.
Just four of the members of the last cabinet have been accommodated in the new Grand Alliance ministry so far.
Bihar in the past had seen a historical row when the then CM Lalu Yadav was ousted from his post by the JD(U)-BJP alliance in 2005.
Yadav along with several other RJD ministers had overstayed in their sprawling official residences, which forced many new ministers including the newly-elected chief minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar to continue staying at their private residences.
When contacted, principal secretary of building construction, Deepak Prasad said all the decisions pertaining to allotment of bungalows would be done as per the defined rules and in due time.
“No meeting has been held on the subject so far,” he said.
TEJASHWI MAY BE ALLOTTED THE 7 CIRCULAR ROAD RESIDENCE IF NIITSH KUMAR VACATES IT TO MOVE TO THE OFFICIAL CM RESIDENCE