CAG audit of Kejriwal's residence will expose AAP's corruption: Delhi BJP

Delhi BJP on Wed welcomed CAG audit into alleged irregularities in the renovation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's official residence, saying it will expose the "corruption" of the AAP government

The Delhi BJP on Wednesday welcomed the CAG audit into alleged irregularities in the renovation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's official residence, saying it will expose the "corruption" of the AAP government.

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) is country's topmost audit body of high repute and its inquiry will soon reveal under whose "pressure" the officials "violated" laws and constructed the "palatial bungalow" for the chief minister otherwise eligible for only a 'Type VII' bungalow, said Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva.

"The CAG must bring out the fact as to how repeated amounts were approved for the bungalow by the Kejriwal government whose ownership title was not clear and relevant authorities like Delhi Urban Arts Commission and Municipal Corporation of Delhi had rejected PWD sanction plan approval requests," he claimed welcoming the audit.

Party MP Manoj Tiwari said earlier Kejriwal used to carry CAG reports levelling allegations of corruption against opposition leaders but now he is "scared" because his "corruption" will be exposed by the same body.

"All those women, youth, slum dwellers, street vendors of Delhi must be feeling cheated because Kejriwal who had promised to end corruption is himself drowned in corruption. Kejriwal will certainly go to jail after investigation into corruption in Sheeshmahal," Tiwari said at a press conference.

Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri claimed that the BJP legislators had met the Delhi Chief Minister on June 24, 2021 and handed over a memorandum to him and asked him why permission was not taken from the Urban Art Commission for the construction of his official residence.

Welcoming the special audit, Bidhuri alleged that laws were "flouted" in the construction of "sheeshmahal" of Kejriwal.

"We had asked Kejriwal whether any permission was taken from Delhi Urban Art Commission to demolish the old house, but did not get an answer, whereas at that time only the first instalment for the construction of the house was approved," Bidhuri claimed.

The Aam Aadmi Party condemned the Centre's decision to initiate a CAG audit into the reconstruction expenses of the Delhi chief minister's official residence, saying the move "reeks of desperation" as the BJP anticipates a defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The AAP's sharp reaction came after Raj Niwas officials said that the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India will conduct a special audit into the alleged "irregularities and violations" in the "reconstruction" of the chief minister's residence.