Y.S.DWIVEDI Vs. DIRECTORATE OF ESTATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner Mr.Y.S. Dwivedi who has retired from the post of Chief Engineer under the Military Engineer Services on 31/12/2019 at the age of 60 years seeks the issuance of a writ of mandamus to the respondent nos.1 and 2 i.e. Directorate of Estates through its Director Estate, Nirman Bhawan, New Delhi and Union of India through the Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs respectively to allow the petitioner to retain the house bearing no. E-5/1, Sector -13, Block E, R.K Puram, Sector-13, New Delhi allotted to him on 14/6/2016 in accordance with the Central Government General Pool Residential Accommodation Rules, 2017 vide registration No.10123061 and AAN no. 244168 on prescribed license fee till the Covid-19 pandemic situation normalizes.

(2.) The petitioner submits that he is aggrieved by three notices issued by the respondent no.1 to him i.e.:-

(3.) The petitioner has further submitted that he being well aware of these obligations after retirement and having planned to settle down in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh post retirement had begun to develop his permanent house in Lucknow which is under construction but not yet in a habitable condition. The petitioner submits that he had expected to finish the construction of his house at Lucknow at the end of June, 2020 and had applied for the retention of the house for six months starting from 1/1/2020 and also paid the requisite amount (apparently of the licence fee) and that the respondent no.1 had granted retention of the house till 30/6/2020 to the petitioner. The petitioner has further submitted that the he had no intention to retain the house after June, 2020 but owing to the nationwide lockdown imposed by the Government of India (GoI) with effect from 25/3/2020 till 30/5/2020 to curb the outbreak of the highly contagious virus, namely Covid-19, the petitioner could not succeed with his plans of completion of construction of his house at Lucknow.