BJP alleges Rs 2k cr scam in construction of classrooms
New Delhi: Delhi BJP on Monday claimed to have exposed an alleged Rs 2,000 crore scam in Delhi government's plan to contruct classrooms in government schools in the Capital, it said in a Press conference at the party's state headqaurters here. While both the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister have rejected these allegations, Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari cited a response to an RTI enquiry made by Harish Khurana, a party spokesperson.
Tiwari claimed that while the Delhi government had spent Rs 2,892 crore for the construction of 12,782 classrooms in its schools in the Capital, the RTI response allegedly showed that the same work could have been completed at a maximum cost of Rs 800 crore.
Tiwari said, "There is a scam of Rs 2,000 crore in it." Moreover, he added that these classrooms were of 300 square feet and had cost the government Rs 24.86 lakh each. He claimed that the stone slabs and T-irons used for building these classrooms are some of the cheapest materials available.
The North-East Delhi MP went on to accuse the Delhi government of "misusing" taxpayers' money and also asked Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is also the Education Minster, to step down. The Delhi BJP chief added that his party will also send a complaint to the Delhi Lokayukta about this alleged scam. Tiwari also asked that the Anti-Corruption Bureau investigate these allegations, so that the truth might come out in the interest of the public.
Further alleging that the Rs 2,000 crore might have been siphoned off, Tiwari also asked that the Chief Minister explain as to where these funds could have been utilised. In fact, the Delhi BJP chief went as far as accusing the Delhi government of allegedly awarding the contracts to companies said to be owned by relatives of the Chief Minister and the Education Minister.
Also present at this Press conference was West Delhi MP Parvesh Verma, who raised questions about whether this is why the Delhi government keeps insisting on higher budgetary allocations for the Education Department.
