Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, June 27: The Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s official mansion, “Sheesh Mahal,” at 6, Flag Staff Road Civil Lines, Delhi, underwent renovations recently. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India is conducting what it described as a “special audit” into the suspected “administrative and financial” irregularities in the renovations.
According to sources in the Lieutenant Governor’s office, the Ministry of Home Affairs recommended the CAG conduct a special audit after receiving a letter from the Lieutenant Governor’s Secretariat on May 24, 2023, which highlighted the gross financial irregularities that were ostensibly reported in the reconstruction of Kejriwal’s official residence.
In his letter, the LG emphasised that these infractions or “extravagant expenditure” were ordered by “Hon’ble CM Madam,” presumably referring to Kejriwal’s wife, amid the height of the Covid-19 outbreak.
According to LG VK Saxena, who cited a report from the Delhi Chief Secretary, the PWD department purportedly undertook the full-fledged construction or re-construction of a new building under the guise of renovation.
The study also claimed that the PWD failed to confirm the property’s ownership prior to starting work. The ‘Building Committee’ of the PWD department has not yet provided the mandatory and prerequisite clearances.
According to a study, a total of about Rs 53 crore have been spent thus far, which is more than three times the initial estimate. The initial cost for construction work, which was to be Rs 15-20 crore, escalated from time to time.
Additionally, Kejriwal was accused of breaking rules when he cut down or transplanted trees.
