‘Delhi Sheeshmahal Work Done During Covid’: PM Modi Cites C&AG Report, Attacks AAP

The Delhi politics is heating up with details of the latest C&AG report on the chief minister’s residence, which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has termed “Sheeshmahal”, being leaked and Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading the attack.

The PM on Sunday quoted a newspaper report to say, “The cost of renovation of the CM’s residence rose three times, and this work was done while the capital was struggling with Covid.” The report has not been tabled in the Delhi Assembly so far, and BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has been deliberately blocking it from being tabled as it wants to hide it.

The AAP has so far not reacted officially to the reports and the PM’s attack – with party convener Arvind Kejriwal not speaking about the controversy when he addressed the press to respond to the Prime Minister’s speech. Many other C&AG reports regarding states that were finalised by the auditing body in November or December last year are public as they have been tabled in the state assemblies.

Such recent reports regarding Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Odisha, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh are available on the C&AG website. The C&AG sends its reports to the states but makes them public only after they are tabled.

The Delhi government last had an assembly session from November 29, 2024 to December 4, 2024, when only two sittings were held. BJP leader Amit Malviya quoted a newspaper report to say the cost of refurbishing the CM’s residence escalated three times to Rs 33 crore, as per the leaked C&AG report.

“From preliminary estimates of Rs 7.91 crore, work was awarded at Rs 8.62 crore in 2020 and when it was completed by the Public Works Department (PWD) in 2022, the total cost was Rs 33.66 crore,” Malviya said, referring to the C&AG findings and claiming there was a splurge on curtains to carpets.