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BJP, AAP trade barbs over alleged bungalow allotment for Kejriwal
BJP claims AAP's Arvind Kejriwal received a luxurious 7-star bungalow in Chandigarh, which AAP denies as fake, challenging BJP to provide proof.
Chandigarh: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday alleged that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal has been allocated a “luxurious, 7-star” government mansion in Chandigarh by his party’s government in Punjab. The AAP, however, has dismissed the charge as a “fake”, and challenged the BJP to produce the allotment letter. The Bhagwant Mann government, too, said that they have “not made any fresh allotments in recent months”.
In a post on X, the Delhi BJP accused Kejriwal of readying a “luxurious 7-star, two-acre government bungalow” in Sector 2, Chandigarh, for himself, reportedly from Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann’s “quota”.
“After vacating the Sheesh Mahal in Delhi, Punjab’s ‘Super CM’ Arvind Kejriwal has now had an even more magnificent Sheesh Mahal prepared in Punjab. In Chandigarh’s Sector 2, Arvind Kejriwal has been allotted a luxurious 7-star government bungalow spread over 2 acres from the chief minister’s quota,” the BJP posted on X and shared a satellite image of the bungalow.
The residence of former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s residence in national Capital’s Civil Lines, dubbed by the then Opposition BJP as “Sheesh Mahal”, was a major political talking point in the run up to Delhi assembly polls. The BJP had alleged lavish spendings amounting to at least ₹33 crore on upgradation and renovations on the bungalow.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said: “I do not know under which quota Punjab government has provided this magnificent bungalow to him.”
AAP Rajya Sabha member Swati Maliwal shared a similar post and alleged that Kejriwal also uses Punjab government aircraft for personal and AAP-related travel. “Yesterday, he boarded a government helicopter right from in front of his house for Ambala, and then from Ambala, the Punjab government’s private jet took him to Gujarat for party work,” she claimed.
The AAP has, however, denied the allegations. “Since the prime minister’s fake Yamuna story was exposed, the BJP is baffled. The bewildered BJP is faking everything now. Fake Yamuna, fake pollution figures, fake claims of rainfall, and now fake 7-star claims,” the AAP said in a post on X.
It further challenged the BJP to produce any allotment letter to support their claim. Only the Chandigarh administration, which is under the BJP, can get something built there, the AAP added.
A senior official from the UT Estate Office also said that these houses were formally allocated to the Punjab government in the late 1950s and continue to serve as official residences for Punjab ministers, including the CM. “We have not made any fresh allotments in recent months, nor have we received any proposal or file for revising the building plans of these government houses in Sector 2,” an officer, who wished not to be named said.
The officer further informed that there are a total of 92 houses in Sector 2, of which 14 are reserved for Punjab ministers, including the Chief Minister of Punjab and rest are private houses, he said.
