The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday successfully secured the allotment of a Type 7 bungalow at 95 Lodhi Estate for its national convenor and former Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, following a prolonged legal dispute with the central government.
The bungalow was previously occupied by Iqbal Singh Laalpura, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former chairperson of the National Minority Commission, who had unsuccessfully contested elections in Punjab.
The legal tussle began after Kejriwal resigned as Delhi Chief Minister in 2024 and vacated the official Chief Minister’s residence at 6 Flagstaff Marg in Civil Lines in October 2024. Unlike many states, Delhi lacks a provision for providing government accommodation to former Chief Ministers, prompting the AAP to seek alternative housing arrangements for its leader.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal, the current allottee of a Type VII bungalow at 5 Ferozshah Road, urged Kejriwal to temporarily relocate there while the party pursued legal action to secure an official residence. The AAP demanded that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) direct the Directorate of Estates to identify and allocate a suitable residence for Kejriwal, arguing that as the head of a national party, he was eligible for a Type 8 bungalow.
The matter reached the Delhi High Court, which facilitated the resolution, leading central agencies to allocate the Type 7 bungalow at 95 Lodhi Estate for Kejriwal. The bungalow features four bedrooms, a hall, a waiting room, a dining room, two lawns (one of which is small), and a camp office with two rooms.
The staff quarters, occupied by personnel who have been based there for nearly a decade, are also part of the property. Sources confirmed that Kejriwal and his wife, Sunita Kejriwal, visited the bungalow on Monday. The family is expected to move in once standard renovations and modifications are completed to make the residence fully functional.
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The allotment comes in the shadow of the ‘sheeshmahal’ controversy, which had sparked significant political debate during the Delhi Assembly elections. The former Chief Minister’s residence at 6 Flagstaff Marg, dubbed the ‘sheeshmahal’ due to alleged extravagant renovations, became a focal point of criticism.
BJP leaders accused Kejriwal of indulging in lavish refurbishments at government expense, claiming that such actions contradicted the AAP’s image of clean and frugal governance. The controversy highlighted tensions between the AAP and the BJP, with the latter using it to challenge Kejriwal’s commitment to transparency and accountability.
The allocation of the 95 Lodhi Estate bungalow marks the resolution of a significant logistical and political challenge for the AAP, ensuring that its national convenor has an official residence befitting his role while navigating the complexities of Delhi’s housing policies for former chief ministers.
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