LUCKNOW: An application seeking impleadment of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati in a pending contempt petition for demolishing government bungalows in Mall Avenue here was moved in the Allahabad High Court on Thursday.
A single bench of the High Court headed by Justice Vikram Nath before whom the application came up for hearing here, directed that it be included in the next cause list.
The application is likely to come up for hearing in a week's time.
The application moved by UP Janhit Sangathan, a social welfare organisation, has pleaded that the demolition of the bungalows in Mall Avenue amounted to contempt of court as the state government, in an earlier similar matter, had given a written undertaking that there would be no demolition in the area and the land there would be alotted to any trust.
The Chief Minister's residence is also located there.
The government then had also said that all the trusts situated in the area would be vacated, the applicant, a retired IAS officer, further submitted.
While nothing was done to get the bungalows vacated from the trusts, several bungalows had been demolished on the direction of the chief minister, it contended.
The pending contempt petition pertained to the violation of the government undertaking given in 1997 on a writ petition challenging the allotment of bungalows to former chief ministers at Mall Avenue.
A contempt petition was filed in 2002 alleging that the government had violated its undertakings by not getting the bungalows vacated.
While seeking impleadment of Mayawati as respondent in the contempt matter, the application also sought issuance of notices to the chief minister.
As many as four government bungalows including those occupied by minister for irrigation Naseemuddin Siddiq and senior BJP leader Lalji Tandon located close to the chief minister's residence at Mall Avenue were recently demolished.
The main opposition Samajwadi Party had also taken strong exception to the demolitions.
SP leader Amar Singh had during a recent election meeting at Farrukhabad lambasted the government for carrying out demolitions. "The Mall Avenue should be named Mayawati avenue," Singh had said.
