New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal may face increasing scrutiny over the 'Sheesh Mahal' controversy surrounding the renovation of his official residence at 6 Flag Staff Road. The Public Works Department (PWD) has recently taken action against three senior engineers involved in the reconstruction of Kejriwal's bungalow, suspending them due to alleged irregularities in the process. These engineers, who were previously relocated to other postings after completing their work in Delhi, are now under investigation for their role in the project, which has drawn widespread criticism.
According to media reports, the suspended engineers—ADG (Civil) CPWD Ashok Kumar Rajdev, Chief Engineer Pradeep Kumar Parmar, and Superintendent Engineer Abhishek Raj—were part of the Delhi government's Public Works Department at the time of the bungalow's renovation. In addition to these three, five other engineers have also been implicated in the irregularities discovered during the construction.
Currently, Ashok Kumar Rajdev and Pradeep Kumar Parmar are posted in Guwahati under the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), while Abhishek Raj is stationed in Kharagpur. Due to their postings outside Delhi, the Vigilance Department requested the Director General of CPWD to suspend the three engineers and impose significant penalties. This comes after the suspension of two other engineers on the orders of Lieutenant Governor Vinay Kumar Saxena. The CPWD has also been urged to take action against a retired engineer connected to the case.
The allegations against these engineers stem from their alleged collusion with the then PWD Minister of the Delhi Government. The Vigilance Department claims that they invoked an emergency provision to authorize the construction of a new bungalow for the Chief Minister, despite there being no pressing need. This occurred in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, at a time when the Finance Department was focused on reducing expenditures. However, these officials allegedly proceeded with the project as an urgent matter, resulting in significant financial misconduct and inflated costs.
The Vigilance Department reports that crores of rupees were spent on luxurious upgrades to the bungalow, including high-end interior changes, premium stone flooring, fine wooden doors, and automatic sliding glass doors. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is now probing the entire matter. It has been revealed that over Rs 45 crore was spent on the renovation of Arvind Kejriwal's bungalow, with tiles and curtains being imported from abroad. Additionally, an RTI inquiry disclosed that from 2015 to 2022, Rs 29 crore was spent on maintenance and minor repairs of the same property.
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