The Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a protest outside chief minister Atishi’s residence on Mathura Road on Saturday, demanding that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government immediately table the 12 Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) reports on the government’s finances and sectoral performances in the Delhi assembly.
Hitting back, the AAP said that the BJP is resorting to theatrics and desperation for media attention.
The BJP protest was held by MLAs led by leader of opposition Vijender Gupta.
“The AAP government has plundered Delhi’s treasury over the last 10 years and wasted thousands of crores of rupees of the people in the guise of development projects. The AAP government is sitting on 12 pending CAG reports to conceal these scams. Despite repeated warnings from the opposition, the CAG office, and the principal accountant general’s office, the government has failed to present the reports in the Assembly,” Gupta said during the protest.
“The purpose of this protest was to demand a special Assembly session to present the 12 CAG reports. Tabling these reports is mandatory, and by not doing so, the Delhi government is showing disrespect to the Constitution. Once the 12 CAG reports are presented in the Delhi assembly, the public will become aware of the AAP’s corruption. If the government fails to do so, the BJP will take the matter to court and pursue legal action,” Gupta said.
The 12 CAG reports are on state finances and the performance of the government in various sectors related to governance in Delhi and pertain to years 2021-22 and 2022-23.
On Friday, the BJP had announced that it would hold a protest outside Atishi’s residence on Saturday on the issue.
“On October 17, the principal accounts office sent a letter to CM Atishi, stating that under Article 151 of the Constitution, section 411 of the National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, 1991, and regulation 210 of the Audit and Accounts Regulation, 2007, it is mandatory for the Delhi government to present CAG’s audit reports in the Delhi assembly. According to constitutional and statutory provisions, the Delhi government must send a proposal to the lieutenant governor to table the 12 reports. However, the government has failed to send any such proposal,” said Gupta.
“Despite multiple reminders from CAG to the finance department, the speaker, and the chief minister, the government has taken no action… The Delhi government is deliberately withholding the reports to cover up corruption and financial irregularities,” Gupta alleged.
