Delhi Police Files New Case Against Manish Sisodia, Satyendra Jain In Rs 2,000 Crore Classroom Scam

The Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) has lodged a case against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and former Delhi ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain over alleged corruption in the construction of classrooms in the national capital.

The scam is pegged at around Rs 2,000 crore related to the construction of 12,748 classrooms and associated buildings when the AAP government ruled between 2015 and 2025.

"A massive scam to the tune of Rs. 2,000 crores was unearthed in the construction of 12,748 classrooms/buildings during the regime of AAP in Delhi. Significant deviations and cost escalations were observed, and not a single work was completed within the prescribed period. Consultant and Architect appointed without following due procedure, and cost escalations were carried out through him. Case registered after receiving permission u/s 17-A POC Act from the competent authority," ANI quoted the Anti-Corruption Bureau's statement in a tweet.

The agency has said that the complaints were filed by BJP Delhi Pradesh Spokesperson Harish Khurana, MLA Kapil Mishra, Neelkanth Bakshi from Media Relations Department, BJP. "12,748 school classrooms at an expenditure of Rs. 2,892 crore. The lump sum cost for constructing one school room, as per the awarded tenders, is approximately Rs. 24.86 lakh per room, whereas such rooms could ordinarily be constructed in Delhi for around Rs. 5 lakh per room," the Anti-Corruption Branch added.

Madhur Verma, Head, ACB, told The Indian Express: "Chief Technical Examiner's report of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) pointed out several anomalies in the project and the report was kept under the carpet for about three years. The case was registered after permission u/s 17-A POC Act was received from the competent authority."

Manish Sisodia was earlier arrested in the Delhi liquor policy scam, and Satyendra Jain was arrested in a money laundering case.

In the Delhi Assembly polls held earlier this year, Manish Sisodia lost against BJP candidate Tarvinder Singh Marwah by a margin of 675 votes in the Jangpura assembly.

Satyendar Kumar Jain lost to BJP's Karnail Singh by a margin of 20998 votes in the Shakur Basti seat.