Sisodia grilled for 3 hours in Delhi ‘classroom scam’, confronted with witness

Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Friday appeared before the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) in connection with an ongoing probe into alleged irregularities in the construction of classrooms of government schools across the national capital.

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A senior official said Sisodia arrived at the ACB office at around 11 am and was questioned for at least three hours in the presence of a witness. He left the office at 2.30 pm following the completion of the day's questioning.

The ACB had summoned AAP leaders Sisodia and Satyendar Jain over alleged corruption in the construction of classrooms in government schools. Jain had appeared before the agency on June 6.

Officials said the investigation was still ongoing and further rounds of questioning may take place. “His response was recorded with respect to various facts and circumstances linked to the case," said Joint Commissioner of Police (ACB) Madhur Verma.

The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the construction of over 12,700 school classrooms across Delhi during Sisodia's tenure as the Education Minister in the Aam Aadmi Party-led government. The ACB has claimed that construction projects were awarded at inflated rates, leading to substantial losses to the public exchequer.

The ACB's initial probe had revealed that despite a 2015-16 finance committee decision capping costs and timelines, most projects saw major delays and cost overruns. In several instances, the contract values escalated by 17 to 90 per cent, with Rs 205.45 crore attributed to the use of richer construction specifications, bypassing the need for fresh tenders--an alleged violation of Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) norms.

Sisodia denied any wrongdoing and maintained that the allegations were politically motivated. "The BJP is playing FIR-FIR game to distract from 100 days of total inaction in Delhi,” he said.

The AAP leader alleged that the BJP was handed a mandate to deliver governance, but instead of addressing power cuts, water shortages and the loot by private schools, it was using investigations to divert attention. “Just like all previous probes led nowhere, this one will also come to nothing,” he said.