New Delhi, July 6: For years, 35 Lodi Estate has been the residence of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, while she was under SPG protection. But senior officials in the Ministry of Housing have told IANS that now, the sprawling government bungalow which came to be seen as a VVIP address, has been allotted to BJP’s Rajya Sabha member Anil Baluni.

This decision came soon after the government asked Priyanka Gandhi to vacate her sprawling 6B category bungalow by August 1. Though she did not occupy any government post, she, by virtue of her Special Protection Group (SPG) cover, was given a government bungalow. But after her SPG cover was withdrawn, that necessity of a government bungalow also faded away, government sources reasoned.

Baluni, who is not just the head of the ruling BJP’s media department but also known to be close to top party leaders, currently resides at 20, Gurudwara Rakabganj Road.

IANS has learnt that the BJP MP from Uttarakhand requested a change of bungalow and with Priyanka Gandhi about to vacate her Lodi Estate one, it was a mere formality. His health conditions were also a matter of consideration during the allotment of the bungalow to Baluni, said a government official. Baluni was diagnosed with cancer last year and has undergone treatment for it in Mumbai, according to multiple BJP sources.