BJP leaders and workers on Thursday staged a protest outside former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence, alleging that “extravagant luxury items” were used to renovate the official bungalow he previously occupied as Delhi CM.
The rally, led by Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva, saw thousands of party workers march from Ashoka Road to Kejriwal’s former residence at 6 Flagstaff Road in Civil Lines.
Raising slogans, the protesters demanded answers from Kejriwal on the source of funding for the luxury items allegedly installed in the bungalow.
The protest was addressed by several senior BJP leaders, including MP Manoj Tiwari, Delhi Assembly Opposition Leader Vijender Gupta and former Delhi government ministers Kailash Gahlot and Raaj Kumar Anand. Police set up double barricades and deployed heavy forces to prevent protesters from entering the home.
Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva was arrested along with several leaders and taken to Parliament Street police station, where they were later released after being served notices.
Sachdeva accused Kejriwal of embezzling government funds to finance the lavish renovation. “From day one, we have said that this ‘Sheesh Mahal’ is the result of embezzlement of millions of rupees from the public’s hard-earned money,” Sachdeva said. “This is a symbol of corruption. We have never heard of something as extravagant as a gold toilet seat,” he added.
He further alleged that when Kejriwal was allotted the bungalow by the Public Works Department (PWD), the inventory was recorded on one page, but now eight pages are required to document the items in the house. He listed several luxury items allegedly installed in the bungalow, including gold toilet seats, a gold washbasin, silver tableware, carpets worth Rs 50 lakh, Rs 8 lakh curtains, expensive stones and Bose speakers in all rooms and bathrooms .
“Where does all this luxury equipment come from, and how did Kejriwal, who pretends to be a common man, manage to afford it?” Sachdeva raised questions and accused Kejriwal of using illegal means to finance the renovations, including links to the alleged liquor and water board scam.
BJP MP Manoj Tiwari expressed disbelief over the alleged opulence of the bungalow, especially the gold toilet seats. “It is shocking to learn that the toilet seat in the lavish residence of the Aam Aadmi Party leader is made of gold. He claims to be a common man, yet he has installed 12 gold toilet seats in his house,” Tiwari noted.
BJP leader Ramvir Singh Bidhuri accused Kejriwal of building the mansion illegally, without necessary approvals, and alleged that dozens of trees were felled to make way for the property.
Former Delhi Minister Kailash Gahlot, who resigned from the Aam Aadmi Party earlier this week, expressed his disappointment over the party’s leadership. “The AAP is no longer the party I joined to be part of a people’s movement. It has become a party of luxury and corruption,” he said. Gahlot, who had worked for AAP for over a decade, suggested that Kejriwal resign over the controversy surrounding the lavish renovation.
Vijender Gupta, Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, accused Kejriwal of promoting a false image of himself as a common man. He called on current Delhi Prime Minister Atishi to clarify whether she lives in her own home or in a “glass palace”, referring to the luxurious features of the renovated bungalow.
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