There is no denying that Mahua Moitra has come to be projected as a leader who has taken on the government.
On the day she was expelled as MP, decked in a red border sari, a defiant Moitra said she would continue attacking and questioning the government and would be back soon.
So, in line with her firefighter mode, what’s baffling many in her party — as well as her supporters outside — is why she is hanging on to her house at 9B, Telegraph Lane, despite two notices and finally an eviction notice.
In stark contrast was the recent case of Rahul Gandhi when he vacated his house at 12, Tughlaq Lane, once he was disqualified as MP. He did so within the stipulated month’s time and made a show of it by handing over the keys himself to the estates department, making the point that he would not ask for any favours from the government he was taking on.
Ironically, both Moitra and Gandhi have a common thread, attacking the government over the Adani issue. But that’s where the similarity ends. In fact, Gandhi is yet to take any official bungalow, even after being restored as an MP. He continues to live with his mother at 10, Janpath.
Moitra has now run out of time. As per the letter from the Directorate of Estate dated January 16 and accessed by News18, she has been served the final eviction notice. She got reprieve twice over and her request to ask for more time on health grounds has not been accepted. In fact, the estates department has found her explanation to stay on “unconvincing”.
“You have been allowed sufficient opportunity but failed to prove that you are not an unauthorized occupant in the public premises in question. You failed to vacate the public premise and continue to remain in unauthorised occupation of the public premises while the expulsion from the Lok Sabha subsists,” the letter said.
The order has made it clear that she would have to leave as soon as possible, failing which she would be evicted using force, if necessary.
However, the fight is not over yet. The house where Moitra has been living since she became an MP has been subject of much controversy, with allegations that it has had an expensive, state-of-the-art makeover.
Moitra does have option of legal recourse but she would have to pay monthly as damages. Sources say that she may have run out of options and would have to vacate. But many in her party wonder why she has lost a political point to score by staying on.
She could, like Rahul Gandhi, have made a show instead of diluting the momentum by staying on. However, those close to her say she has asked for time on health grounds. And while the government may not have bought this argument, she is bound to raise a stink over it.
The question is, will she get sympathisers?
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