Sheesh Mahal: BJP retains pressure

The Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta said on Monday that the 14 reports of the CAG will be tabled in the assembly on Tuesday. One among those reports covers the issue of redevelopments made in the bungalow on 6 Flag Staff Road

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders on Monday continued their attacks on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) over the controversy surrounding Arvind Kejriwal’s former official residence on 6 Flag Staff Road, dubbed “Sheesh Mahal” by the BJP, with Delhi minister Parvesh Verma inviting the media for a tour of the bungalow at 6 Flag Staff Road.

The bungalow in question. (HT Archive)

“We are heading to the ‘Sheesh Mahal’ now, we will show you,” Verma told reporters at the Delhi assembly. His statement prompted a media rush to the Civil Lines bungalow, where security was beefed up in anticipation.

However, the visit was abruptly cancelled, with a police officer confirming, “The minister is not coming.” His office later confirmed the decision without assigning any reason for the last-minute cancellation.

The move, coinciding with the first sitting of the newly constituted Delhi assembly, signals the BJP’s intent to sustain pressure on the AAP over the issue.

The AAP did not respond to requests for comment.

Significantly, the Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta said on Monday that the 14 reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) will be tabled in the assembly on Tuesday. One among those reports covers the issue of redevelopments made in the bungalow on 6 Flag Staff Road.

BJP MP Brijmohan Agrawal went a step further, declaring that the bungalow would be “legally demolished.” “He made his ‘Sheesh Mahal’ using public money; now the public will demolish it,” he told news agency PTI, linking the issue to the upcoming tabling of CAG reports in the Delhi Assembly.

BJP general secretary Tarun Chugh also attacked Kejriwal, calling the renovation a “scam” that would be exposed in the assembly.” “The BJP’s double-engine government in Delhi is committed to fulfilling every promise made. Those involved in scams, deception, and corruption will have their records exposed in the Delhi Assembly through the CAG report,” he was quoted as saying by news agencies.

The Central Vigilance Commission launched an investigation on February 15 into alleged irregularities in the bungalow’s renovation, following complaints by Vijender Gupta in October 2024. Gupta, now the Delhi Assembly Speaker, accused Kejriwal of misusing public funds for luxury at his official residence.

The controversy first erupted in 2023 when the BJP coined the term “Sheesh Mahal” to highlight what it called extravagant government spending on Kejriwal’s former official residence.

To be sure, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a preliminary enquiry (PE) into alleged irregularities and misconduct in the renovation of the official residence of the then Delhi CM in September 2023. The PE was registered on the basis of a report the then Delhi chief secretary Naresh Kumar submitted flagging irregularities in the house’s renovation. Later, the CBI took files related to the matter from PWD offices.

Delhi Speaker Vijender Gupta confirmed that 14 CAG reports would be tabled in the assembly on Tuesday. Sources said the reports would include details of cost overruns and other alleged irregularities in the bungalow’s renovation.