AAP and BJP Trade Corruption Charges in Delhi Over Rice Scheme and CAG Report
On Sunday, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) traded heavy corruption allegations in Delhi, with AAP alleging a ₹22,000 crore scam in the procurement and sale of subsidised rice for the poor, while BJP ministers cited Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) findings pointing to financial irregularities during AAP's tenure.
Addressing a press conference, AAP Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that the Food Corporation of India had agreed to supply 31,000 tonnes of heavily subsidised rice every week to the North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Limited in Assam. The arrangement, recommended by Food Supplies Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa’s department, was intended for distribution among Delhi’s poor over a three-year period.
However, Bharadwaj alleged that the corporation instead sold the rice to a private company in Haryana at nearly double the price. He claimed this generated between ₹70 crore and ₹71 crore in commission every week, amounting to ₹11,000 crore in commission on rice worth ₹22,000 crore over three years.
Bharadwaj stated that Central government vigilance officials had detected the alleged racket and suspended an officer, but claimed the Delhi government remained silent. He demanded that Chief Minister Rekha Gupta seek Minister Sirsa’s resignation and fix responsibility for the matter.
Minister Sirsa denied the allegations and threatened legal action against AAP leaders Saurabh Bharadwaj and Sanjeev Jha. Giving them 24 hours to withdraw their accusations and tender a public apology, Sirsa posted on X that the allegations were false, fabricated, and intended to defame him, adding that he would meet them in court if they did not apologize.
In response to AAP's charges, Public Works Department Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh cited a CAG report tabled in the Assembly on August 7 that highlighted irregularities during AAP’s 11-year tenure in the Capital. Singh stated that the Delhi government had received 24 CAG reports over the past 18 months pointing to financial lapses.
Singh alleged that former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal flouted rules by floating 1,185 manual tenders and inserting arbitration clauses in contracts. He further claimed that the GST Department colluded with business owners to leave ₹70,410 crore in tax revenue outstanding and generated bogus e-way bills valued at ₹68,680 crore.
