A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) revealed a revenue loss of Rs 2,206 crore to the exchequer, showing the alleged irregularities in the implementation of the Delhi government’s now-scrapped liquor policy, according to the media reports. The report also highlights lapses, policy violations and deviations. It also mentions that the policy by then ex-CM Arvind Kejriwal failed to achieve its intended goals and alleged that AAP leaders benefitted from kickbacks.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a scathing attack against former Delhi CM Kejriwal claiming of “big scams” in the renovation of his official residence. Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters here, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra claimed the CAG report also indicated that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government under Kejriwal incurred much higher expenditures on advertisements for various programmes than the money spent on their implementation.
Patra said, “Expenditure on the house and the political shop, no expenditure on people. This is the reality of Arvind Kejriwal’s party. But the people of Delhi are watching and listening, and they will definitely give response in the (upcoming) elections”. The BJP leader said that the cost for “remodelling” Kejriwal’s previous official residence was initially estimated at Rs 7.61 crore, but it was “repeatedly” revised and increased at various stages with “no justification for the payments to the consultants”.
A payment of Rs 33.66 crore was made for the construction of Kejriwel’s ‘Sheesh Mahal’ in April 2022, which was 342.31 per cent higher than the initial estimate of Rs 7.61 crore, Patra claimed. “You will be surprised. The CAG report says the PWD made a proposal for remodelling Kejriwal’s house, saying the existing single-storey building will be demolished to build a two-storey house to make it bigger. The proposal was accepted within a day,” the BJP spokesman said.
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