AAP MLAs on Friday trained guns at Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the ongoing session of the Delhi Assembly as they cited Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports on irregularities in various Central Government schemes including the construction of the Dwarka Expressway.
The BJP MLAs staged a walkout when their notice for a discussion on an alleged nexus between an AAP MLA and a gangster was not accepted by Deputy Speaker Rakhi Birla who was in the Chair.
Starting the discussion on the alleged scam in the construction of Dwarka Expressway and other irregularities pointed out by the CAG in its report tabled in Parliament recently, AAP MLA Rituraj said the cost of the expressway increased from Rs 18 crore per km to Rs 250 crore per km.
“This seems to be a gold road,” Rituraj said, and demanded that the scam be probed by the CBI or the ED “although not much is expected from them”. Participating in the debate, AAP MLA from Model Town Durgesh Pathak also said that there was a scam in the construction of the expressway as well as in the Ayushman Bharat Health scheme. AAP MLA Praveen Kumar said the CAG report had pointed out various “scams” in the BJP-ruled States of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
The BJP leaders returned to the House after some time and Leader of Opposition Ramvir Singh Bidhuri urged the Deputy Speaker to allow them to participate in the discussion. But, Birla did not allow them to speak, observing “Do Opposition members think this is some garden or cafe where they can come and go whenever they want?”
Speaking on the issue, Delhi Cabinet Minister Imran Hussain said on one hand Prime Minister Modi talks about fighting corruption, but the CAG report has shown that agencies of the Centre are involved in irregularities.
“While the Dwarka Expressway is being constructed at a cost that is 15 times higher than the estimate, the AAP Government in Delhi has completed projects at costs lower than estimates and that, too, in time,” Hussain stated. Even as the Minister spoke, the BJP MLAs protested over being denied the chance to participate in the discussion and continued to raise slogans.