The Kilokri bungalow linked to an ASI monument demolition row has been allotted to the Delhi Chief Secretary. (File Photo)A bungalow in Southeast Delhi’s Kilokri Jal Vihar, allegedly constructed by former Delhi Jal Board (DJB) CEO Udit Prakash Rai by razing down a 15th century monument, has a new occupant – Chief Secretary Rajeev Verma, The Indian Express has learnt. “He has moved into the Jal Vihar bungalow. It has been a month now,” a senior official said.There was controversy related to the bungalow in 2023 when the Delhi Vigilance department issued a show cause notice to Rai for allegedly razing a 15th century Pathan period ‘Mahal’ – dating back to 1418 when the Sayyid dynasty ruled Delhi – to construct a lavish official bungalow for himself. The bungalow, constructed at a cost of nearly Rs 4 crore, was built on a site measuring 700 sq m on a plot of 5,500 sq m.Verma – a 1992-AGMUT (Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram and Union Territory) cadre IAS officer, who was appointed the Chief Secretary (CS) of Delhi last October – had not been staying in a government-allotted accommodation due to non-availability of a bungalow.“Usually, different types of houses are allocated to officials according to their rank, cadre and seniority. The CS was initially looking for an official accomodation in Chankyapuri’s Satya Marg, where most of the former chief secretaries stayed during their tenure. However, due to non-availability of any official flat, bungalow 2 at Kilokri Jal Vihar was allotted to him,” said the official.“The bungalow will be returned to the DJB, after the CS vacates it,” the official added.Verma, who is set to retire in December, did not respond to calls and messages seeking a comment on the matter.Officials said the Public Works Department (PWD) is the nodal agency for alloting houses to officers of Delhi government, even to the Chief Minister and the ministers. Bureaucrats need to apply to PWD for allotment of official accommodations.“After receiving requests, the PWD first looks for houses available with it. If there are no houses or flats available, it looks for houses available with other departments and sends a proposal. The CS is eligible for a Type VIII bungalow. So, the department approached the DJB for a bungalow as per his cadre and seniority,” the senior official said.Maintaining that they received a proposal from the PWD in this regard, a senior DJB official said, “The bungalow at Kilokri has been lying idle for over two years. At present, DJB does not have any official as senior as a CS. So, after the PWD requested for bungalow 2 at Kilokri Jal Vihar, we gave the bungalow on the basis of an exchange policy. As of now, we don’t require a bungalow but when we do, we will request the PWD to handover one of its bungalows to us,” the official added. “The house is located on the DJB campus and there are many government staff quarters/flats around it,” the official added.Story continues below this adAccording to minutes of the meeting of DJB held in January, “PWD requested DJB accommodation of bungalow no 2, Type VIII, SDW , Kilokri Jal Vihar… The board has considered the above said proposal… and approved the same.”The ‘Mahal’ finds a mention in the Archaeological Survey of India’s List of Muhammadan and Hindu Monuments, Vol. IV.The Vigilance notice to Rai had said that he was “responsible for the demolition of a part of the entire structure…” and that he was “well aware of the fact that there exists a historical monument” at the site.The Indian Express had earlier reported that while Rai was posted in Mizoram, his family used to stay at the house when the Vigilance department took note of the matter. Following the row, the Ministry of Home Affairs suspended Rai and asked him to vacate the house. His family vacated the bungalow in September 2023, and the house has been empty since then.The DJB, meanwhile, claimed that a dispute regarding the bungalow’s status has been resolved. “The previous ASI dispute has been resolved. The DJB guards the area where some structures related to the monument can still be seen; a well-secured gate has been built to prevent any damage to the ASI property. The bungalow is a residential property, there are no disputes now,” said an official.In 2024, when AAP was in power, the DJB had proposed to convert the bungalow into a human resource-cum-engineering training centre. “This did not happen. Then the plan was to turn the house into a guest house but that too did not take off… As Delhi does not have a state guest house, it was not right that DJB got a guest house,” said an official.