New Delhi, March 25 Delhi has only one "mansion," the "glass mansion" of Arvind Kejriwal, while the rest live in "shelters," Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Wednesday, citing alleged exorbitant spending on the 6, Flagstaff bungalow, where he earlier lived as her predecessor.
The AAP, which boycotted the budget session, retaliated, saying that those (the BJP government) who bought a "VVIP boat" for Rs 6.20 crore are questioning a Rs 30 crore CM residence for the past three years.
In a scathing attack on Kejriwal in the Assembly, Gupta charged that her former counterpart saw himself "as the 'Shahanshah-e-Alam (emperor) and treated Delhi's people as subjects."
Speaking on the CAG report that flagged a 342 per cent rise in the cost of renovating the bungalow, Gupta cited various costly items stored there for his comfort, including a waiter lift and a Rs 18 lakh coffee maker.
Kejriwal lived in the 6, Flagstaff bungalow in north Delhi between 2015 and 2024 while he was the chief minister.
In a statement, Delhi AAP president Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that when Kejriwal's "official residence" was being renovated, the Prime Minister's residence was also being built.
"Every detail of the CM residence is in the public domain, while every detail of the Prime Minister's residence has been kept in secret," he said and added AAP was ready for a fair debate on the issue.
"There cannot be a selective debate targeting only one residence. We have been saying this for the last two years, and we are reiterating it once again," he said.
Cinematic references from 'Dhurandar', comparing Kejriwal to 'Rahman Dakait', and a list of items installed inside his former residence marked the discussion of the CAG audit report in the Delhi Assembly.
"After taking a tour of the sheesh mahal, it felt like I live in a dharmshala. There is only one mahal in the city, while others live in dharmshalas. When people were dying in Delhi due to COVID, he (Kejriwal) was busy building his sheesh mahal," Gupta said during the discussion.
The chief minister said six different consultants were hired for a single job of renovation of the house, crores were given to them, privately, without tendering.
As she made the allegations, she recommended that the CAG report be referred to the Public Accounts Committee of the Delhi Assembly for further examination.
Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma read out the list of items inside the bungalow, handwritten on a paper roll spreading several metres.
The list, read out by him, carried such items as luxury furniture, imported fittings, high-value curtains, expensive chandeliers, gym equipment, multiple televisions, designer interiors, mini bars and barbecue units.
Meanwhile, Gupta claimed that Rs 7 crore was spent on the renovation of former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia's residence.
She also read out a list of renovation costs, running into crores, spent on ministers and other functionaries of the previous AAP government.
Verma said the report has highlighted grave lapses in construction work.
"Recently, a popular movie, 'Dhurandhar,' was released. Arvind Kejriwal was like 'Rahman Dakait' who robbed public wealth, but our 'Dhurandhar' public voted such 'Dakait' (bandit) last year," he added.
The renovation work at 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow was completed for Rs 33.66 crore against an estimated cost of around Rs 8 crore, said the Comptroller and Auditor General report tabled in the Assembly on Monday.
The bungalow was pejoratively named by the BJP as "sheesh mahal" alleging corruption in its renovation and lavish items kept there.
The issue was one of the major poll planks of the party that defeated the AAP in the Assembly polls held in February, 2025.