When a retired IAS officer took on six former UP CMs in SC for 14 years

He argued the case himself before the Supreme Court and 14 years after he had filed the petition against the practice of chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh gifting themselves palatial bungalows for life—furnished and renovated with public funds—the court ordered, on May 7, six former chief ministers to vacate their bungalows in Lucknow. But the retired IAS officer rues that the court has said nothing about the government bungalows occupied by various trusts formed by political leaders. He is yet to study the court’s order, says SN Shukla.

He would take a call after he goes through it. “These six former chief ministers may belong to different political parties, but their interests coincide. So, they are bound to stick together as far as this case goes,” Shukla says quietly. The petition, filed in 2004 a year after Shukla retired from the Indian Administrative Service, took 14 long years to reach a decision.

The Allahabad High Court actually took no time in ruling in favour of the state government and said that it had the authority to allot bungalows for life to anyone who had been a Chief Minister. When Shukla filed the appeal in the Supreme Court, the judges asked him to hand over notices to the trusts. He recalls, “When I went to hand over the notice to the Lohia Trust, I was denied entry and was assaulted. This I narrated to the apex court and told them that I would not be able to deliver notices on my own.”

This was the only incident, the only act of intimidation that he faced during all these years. “Political parties know that Lok Prahari is not SN Shukla, that the NGO is run by a group of people with impeccable credentials and known for their integrity in public life. That could be the reason why they have never tried to harass us,”.

The retired IAS officer was known for being upright while in service. “In 1982 when I was Secretary, PWD and supervising the Estate department, the then Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh ND Tiwari asked me to allot a bungalow to former Chief Minister VP Singh on Mall Avenue, a bungalow which had been allotted to him when he was Chief Minister. I argued that as per rules, the government could not allot the bungalow to Singh. Later, a smaller house in Raj Bhawan colony was allotted to him,” the officer remembers.

“I had another polite confrontation with the political leadership of the state some time in 1984-85 when I received a call from the CM’s office saying that the then CM Sripat Mishra wanted me to reach his official residence immediately.” “I still remember it was almost 10 pm. I reached the CM’s residence. The CM told me that my minister (PWD Minister) Amaar Rizvi was not happy with me. I told CM sahib that since Amaar Sahib was more important to him than I was, I could be easily transferred out of the department,” Shukla recalls with a smile.

The transfer order was never issued and he continued working as Secretary PWD for the next six months before receiving a routine transfer order during summer months. The retirement has not mellowed him. Quiet but firm, the second innings of his life, he says, is more pleasant and enjoyable as there is no external pressure on him. “I am enjoying this life more as now I am not answerable to anyone.

Through Lok Prahari, we are raising national issues particularly related to corruption at high places”, he says. A hero to a large number of common people, Shukla is becoming a household name in Lucknow. “People often ask me to take up their cases as I have contested this case myself in the Supreme Court. As we cannot afford the high fees of Supreme Court lawyers, my Law Degree from Agra University has come in handy,”he says. “I have only one suggestion to people – fight your case yourself. If you are not satisfied with government decisions, move the court and argue yourself,” he adds.