HC directs TN to give priority in housing allotments to

The Madras High Court today directed the state government to give priority to staff of the judiciary in the matter of allotment of government houses.
The First Bench, comprising Chief Justice S K Kaul and Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana, gave the direction while passing further interim orders on a PIL from the TN Judicial Ministerial Officers Association represented by its general secretary S P Rajendran of Chidambaram taluk.
After perusing the report filed by the Registrar General of the High Court, the bench said the report portrays the "sad state of affairs so far as housing for the court staff is concerned."

"Instead of recommended 15 per cent housing for judiciary, the state government has provided only 4.8 per cent.."
"If the pending applications required to be considered for allotment are dealt with in full, it is stated that even then the total allotment to the court staff would be 12.43 per cent of the total number of quarters which would be available for allotment under TNHB and this percentage would still go down if the PWD quarters are taken into account."
The bench, while directing the Housing Secretary to immediately attend to the requirements, in its order, said "not to make allotment to other departments without giving priority to the judiciary, in view of the percentages set out aforesaid."

"We hope and expect that the situation will not arise where we will have to stop allotment of quarters to other departments till the requirement of the judiciary is satisfied as even the demands are much below the 15 per cent of benchmark."
The bench made it clear that the object is not to keep 15 per cent accommodation reserved with partly unoccupied accommodation, but that so long as the requirement of the judiciary is 15 per cent or less, it should be fully met and issue of proportionality would arise only thereafter."
Directing the Housing Secretary to file an affidavit within two weeks, the bench adjourned the matter for further hearing to January 8.