Action to evict Payal Abdullah from J-K govt bungalow here

New Delhi: Action to evict Payal Abdullah, estranged wife of former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, from the J and K government bungalow here was initiated today by the state authorities.

A squad from the J and K Resident Commissioner’s office broke the outer gate of the bungalow and were taking out her belongings.

The action followed a Delhi High Court order on August 19.

After asking her orally to “gracefully” vacate the official bungalow, the court had said Payal and the estranged couple’s two sons staying with her are “liable to be evicted forthwith”, terming their entitlement to retain it as “wholly illegal”.

Payal, who has been residing at the bungalow since 1999, had approached the High Court after the trial court on August 16 had asked her to move out of the house in Lutyen’s zone here.

The high court was hearing Payal’s plea seeking that she and her children be not evicted from 7, Akbar Road (type VIII) bungalow here or an alternative accommodation be provided in view of their security status and threat to their lives.

The J and K government opposed Payal’s stay in the bungalow, saying it was faced with an extremely piquant situation as it does not have an appropriate accommodation to house the Chief Minister in Delhi befitting her position and security imperatives.

PTI