170. AAP MLA turns down posh bungalow accommodation

 To be with his constituents   Sunday, May 1st, 2016

When greed and unending hunger for power have come to dent the image of public servants in India, there’s one Aam Aadmi Party MLA, who has decided to represent the common man in an inspiring way.

When austerity is merely talked about but never followed by politicians, this AAP legislator’s action has come as a breath of fresh air in Indian politics.

Jagdeep Singh, an AAP legislator from Delhi’s Hari Nagar constituency, was recently allotted official accommodation in the posh Civil Lines area. But he chose to turn down the offer in favor of his own flat in Fateh Nagar.

Had the 42-year-old politician not rejected the offer, he would have become the neighbour of Delhi chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal.

He told jantakareporter.com, “aam aadmi must live among common people. That’s the true spirit of AAP values. Truth be told, when I was offered the bunglow, my first instinct was to accept it. But then soon my morality didn’t allow me. I remembered the purpose with which we had joined politics. Had I moved in to the Civil Lines bunglow, it would have severely restricted my ability to interact with the people of Hari Nagar. And that would have been a huge betrayal of the people who elected me to the assembly.”

He said that it was incumbent upon every AAP leader to keep the ‘philosophy of aam aadmi’ alive. Singh was allotted the bunglow because of his role as the Chief Whip in the Kejriwal government.

The estimated monthly rent of the bunglow offered to Singh is close to Rs 5 lakh.

Singh’s rejection of an expensive accommodation at the expense of taxpayers’ money is also a reminder to those politicians – often mocked as squatters- who refuse to vacate the official bunglows even when they are no longer eligible to enjoy this privilege.