Dwarka CGHS members allot flats to themselves

New Delhi: Months after Delhi government promised to resolve the long-pending issue of society flats in Dwarka, members went ahead and conducted a selfdraw on Sunday. The move, said Ashok Kumar, a member of the ill-fated CGHS flats and the driving force behind the residents’ movement, came after the government’s failure to come through on its assurance to resolve the matter ‘‘soon’’. ‘‘In February, we had met CM, Sheila Dikshit, and she had promised to clear the backlog so that allotments could take place. She had said the allotments would start after a month. Nothing has happened as yet though,’’ said Kumar.
   On Sunday, more than 600 members got together to start the allotment of flats in six group housing societies — Delhi Apartments CGHS, Air India CGHS, Pragitisheel Bhairwa CGHS, Batukji CGHS, Sanchar CGHS and Khattar CGHS. The self-draw, which saw active participation by not only desperate members but also a number of political figures, including local MP Mahabal Mishra and CPI general secretary, A B Bardhan, is not the first such self-draw conducted by the members. In January this year, a group of affected members, under the umbrella of Association of Suffering Members of CGHS, decided to take the unprecedented step of holding a selfdraw after years of waiting for the RCS to clear the files.
   Said Kumar, ‘‘After the CBI enquiry, 58 CGHS were cleared by the court. The Delhi government had also cleared 48 societies in 2008. However, allotment in only 28 societies have taken place till date, while the rest of us are still waiting to claim our houses.’’ According to members, the failure to allot flats has meant huge financial losses for them, as they have been paying EMIs as well as rent at their present accommodations. The members have also not been able to claim income tax rebate, say members, even though they are paying EMI, as possession letter hasn’t been given. The construction of the flats was completed in 2005, allege members.
   Till date, the self-draw has seen allotment of almost 2,000 flats in 18 CGHS, with most of the residents already occupying the flats after the draws. The first time that the members had conducted the self-draw, the RCS had come out strongly against the move, threatening imprisonment for flouting rules. However, the stiff defence put up by the affected members had resulted in the government offering to expedite the matter, and resolve the impasse without confrontation.
   However, Sunday’s selfdraw seems to have put paid to such hopes by the government. The members present were vociferous in their anger at the lack of any initiative from the RCS, which they termed as ‘‘harassment’’. The large-scale participation by members underlined the desperation, even as Kumar threatened that the members would now go in for a ‘‘flood of self draws’’ if the government doesn’t act fast. The next draw, added Kumar, is already being planned. 

Source: TimeofIndia