New Delhi, Aug 18 - The Delhi High Court Tuesday asked a woman government employee to refund Rs.1.19 lakh she had received as house rent allowance (HRA) despite staying with her husband in an official accommodation.

Rajni Devi, a hostel warden in the National Bal Bhawan, had submitted a plea claiming HRA. But she was living with her husband, also a government employee, in an official accommodation alloted to him at Rajya Sabha Niwas since 1996.

The court dismissed the plea and directed Rajni to refund Rs.1.19 lakh she had taken as HRA from 1996 to 2005.

In July 2005, the Central Audit found that the HRA paid to her was irregular and the government then asked her to refund the allowance paid to her for the nine years.

'Since the petitioner (Rajni) is not able to justify the payment of house rent allowance made to her, she has no reasonable justification to retain it. Therefore, no fault can be found in the government's order directing recovery of the HRA paid to her,' Justice Sunil Gaur said in his order.