Patna, November 27: Former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi has been directed to vacate the government bungalow she has occupied for nearly 20 years, after the state’s Building Construction Department (BCD) on Tuesday issued a notice enforcing a 2019 court ruling against lifetime allotments for ex-chief ministers.
Devi, who has long served as Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, has been assigned a new official residence at 39 Harding Road. BCD Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary said the newly allotted bungalow “has enough space and is designated for high-ranking officials”.
The decision affects 10 Circular Road, a prominent political address in Patna where Devi has lived with her husband and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad. The residence has for years served as a hub for party meetings and strategy sessions. It was originally granted to Devi during her tenure as chief minister.
Government officials said the move was in line with the Patna High Court’s 2019 order that struck down lifetime bungalow allocations as misuse of public funds.
Devi’s daughter, Rohini Acharya, now based in Singapore, sharply criticised the decision, accusing the Nitish Kumar-led government of “targeting her family to insult Lalu Prasad,” whom she called the “messiah of millions”.
“The party may throw him out of the house, but how will you throw him out of the hearts of Bihar’s people?” she wrote on social media, urging the government to respect her father’s political stature and health. The Bihar government has not commented publicly on the allegations.
