Corruption Scandal in Delhi: AAP Ministers Summoned in Multi-Crore Classroom Scam

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has issued summonses to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, who are implicated in a staggering Rs 2,000 crore corruption scandal involving the construction of classrooms in Delhi government schools. Minister Jain has been directed to appear at the ACB office on June 6, followed by Sisodia's court appearance on June 9.

This investigation unfolded after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) representatives, including spokesperson Harish Khurana, MLA Kapil Mishra, and media official Neelkanth Bakshi, lodged a complaint against the AAP ministers. They accused them of artificially inflating the costs of constructing semi-permanent classrooms. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police ACB, Shweta Singh Chauhan, the probe uncovered significant cost escalations and violations of procurement rules involving 34 contractors connected to AAP.

Speaking with ANI, Chauhan stated that the alleged scam exceeded Rs 2,000 crore, involving semi-permanent classroom structures estimated at around Rs 24,00,000 each, surpassing market rates at the time. Reports suggest that despite a market rate of Rs five lakh for each classroom, the project's tenders quoted around Rs 24.86 lakh per classroom. ACB chief Madhur Verma highlighted that the Expenditure Finance Committee set a sanctioned project completion date in June 2016, with no allowance for cost escalations.

(With inputs from agencies.)