BJP protests against use of ‘expensive’ items at Kejriwal’s ‘Sheesh Mahal’

BJP leaders and workers staged a protest outside the residence of former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday, alleging “extravagant luxurious items” were used to renovate the official bungalow earlier occupied by him as Delhi CM.

The demonstration, 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 regarding the source of funding for the luxurious items allegedly installed at the bungalow.

The protest was addressed by several senior BJP leaders, including MP Manoj Tiwari, Delhi Assembly Leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta and former Delhi Government ministers Kailash Gahlot and Raaj Kumar Anand. The police set up double barricades and deployed heavy forces to prevent protesters from entering the residence.

Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva, along with several leaders, was detained and taken to the Parliament Street police station, where they were later released after being issued a warning.

Sachdeva accused Kejriwal of embezzling public money to fund the lavish renovation. “From day one, we have been saying that this ‘Sheesh Mahal’ is the result of the embezzlement of crores of rupees from the public’s hard-earned money,” Sachdeva said. “This is a symbol of corruption. We’ve never heard of something as extravagant as a golden toilet seat before,” he added.

He further claimed that when Kejriwal was allotted the bungalow by the Public Works Department (PWD), its inventory was recorded on a single 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 golden toilet seats, a golden washbasin, silver dinner sets, carpets worth Rs 50 lakh, Rs 8 lakh curtains, expensive stones and Bose speakers in all rooms and bathrooms.

“Where did all this luxurious equipment come from, and how did Kejriwal, who pretends to be a common man, manage to afford it?” Sachdeva questioned, accusing Kejriwal of using illicit means to fund the renovations, including links to the alleged liquor and water board scams.

BJP MP Manoj Tiwari expressed disbelief over the alleged lavishness of the bungalow, particularly the golden toilet seats. “It is shocking to learn that the toilet seat in the lavish residence of Aam Aadmi Party’s leader is made of gold. He claims to be a common man, yet has 12 gold toilet seats installed at his house,” Tiwari remarked.

BJP leader Ramvir Singh Bidhuri accused Kejriwal of building the mansion illegally, without necessary approvals, and claimed that dozens of trees had been cut to make way for the property.

Former Delhi minister Kailash Gahlot, who resigned from the Aam Aadmi Party earlier this week, expressed disillusionment with 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 should resign over the controversy surrounding the lavish renovation.

Vijender Gupta, Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, accused Kejriwal of promoting a false image of himself as a common man. He called on Delhi’s current Chief Minister Atishi to clarify whether she lives in her own house or in a “glass palace”, referencing the luxurious features of the renovated bungalow.