Saxena spent taxpayers’ money to boost image, says Bharadwaj

Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Tuesday accused Lieutenant -Governor (L-G) VK Saxena of spending Rs 1.5 crore of taxpayers’ money annually to enhance his social media image.

The move, Bharadwaj said, was an “unethical” and “unconstitutional” misuse of public funds aimed at influencing voters ahead of the upcoming elections.

He said the L-G’s office had issued a tender inviting social media management agencies to handle the digital presence of the L-G. “L-G saab has instructed to spend about Rs 1.5 crore annually for promotion on social media,” he said.

He further criticised the L-G for forming a team of 10 persons solely to manage his social media accounts.

Bharadwaj questioned the necessity and ethics behind such expenditure, especially without the approval of the Delhi Assembly. “Did L-G take permission from the Delhi Assembly or people of Delhi to spend this money on social media?” he questioned.

“This money is given to the L-G to run his office, not to polish his image.” Bharadwaj added.

The Delhi minister pointed out that despite the L-G’s efforts on social media over the past two years, his posts have not garnered significant engagement. “Even after tweeting for two years, the L-G saab is not able to get enough retweets,” Bharadwaj remarked.

“He has made a plan to make himself famous by roping in famous social media influencers,” he said.

Bharadwaj also argued that the L-G should focus on working for the people of Delhi rather than on self-promotion.

The minister went on to explain that the tender required the selected agency to manage the L-G’s existing social media handles, create new accounts and produce regular content, including 50 posts per week and weekly video clips. The agency is also tasked with engaging popular social media influencers to promote the L-G’s activities.

“We strongly condemn this wasteful expenditure of Delhi taxpayers’ money,” he said, urging the BJP and the L-G to provide an explanation for this decision.

“While essential services like sewer, water pipelines and one-time settlement for water board bills are neglected by the Finance Department, this was approved. We demand an explanation for this misuse of public funds,” Bharadwaj demanded.