ACB files against corruption case against AAP’s Sisodia, Jain

The Delhi government’s Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) has registered a criminal case against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and former ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain over alleged irregularities in the construction of 12,748 classrooms in Delhi government schools, officials said on Wednesday.

The AAP denied the allegations, calling the probe against its leaders “theatrics” by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

According to ACB, the case involves contracts worth over ₹2,800 crore for construction of 12,748 classrooms in government schools during the AAP’s tenure, in which consultants and architects were allegedly appointed without due procedure. The inquiry was launched after complaints by BJP spokesperson Harish Khurana, MLA Kapil Mishra, and the party’s then media head Neelkanth Bakshi.

“This case involves inflated costs, procedural violations, and cost escalations designed to benefit contractors linked to the party. Each classroom was built at an average cost of ₹24.86 lakh—nearly five times the market rate of ₹5 lakh,” said ACB chief and joint commissioner of police Madhur Verma.

Verma said the classrooms were built as semi-permanent structures (SPS) with a 30-year lifespan, but at costs comparable to reinforced concrete buildings lasting 75 years. No financial justification was provided for choosing SPS, he said.

The ACB also found that consultants and architects were appointed without tenders and oversaw cost escalations that bypassed procurement norms and Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) guidelines. Verma said that the contracts initially worth ₹860 crore escalated to ₹2,892 crore. Of this, ₹205 crore was attributed to “richer specifications”—a term for vague upgrades lacking financial transparency.

A CVC report issued in February 2020 but concealed for nearly three years flagged major procurement violations and unjustified changes made after tenders were awarded.

“The cost per square foot for SPS classrooms was ₹2,292—comparable to permanent model schools, nullifying the rationale for using SPS,” Verma said. Contracts were awarded to 34 firms, most of which appeared to have had links to the AAP.

In five schools, work worth ₹42.5 crore was carried out without fresh tenders.

Records show that in 2015-16, the expenditure finance committee had directed the project be completed by June 2016 without cost overruns. However, not a single classroom was built on time, and significant deviations followed.

“After receiving approval under Section 17-A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, we’ve registered FIR No. 31/2025 under Section 13(1) of the Act and IPC Sections 409 and 120-B. A full investigation is underway to fix responsibility across the political and bureaucratic spectrum,” Verma said.

The action comes on the heels of several AAP leaders, including former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Sisodia already facing legal challenges. Sisodia was arrested in February 2023 in connection in a case related to the now-scrapped excise policy. Party leader Naresh Balyan was arrested in November 2024 for extortion, while Jain also faced allegations on money laundering charges in which he was arrested and is currently out on bail.

The BJP demanded the ACB probe also cover former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva alleged that the scam unfolded under the guise of education reform. “As soon as Kejriwal came to power in 2015, he began laying the foundation for corruption. The government allocated ₹2,892 crore to build 12,748 classrooms—meaning each cost around ₹24.86 lakh. But CPWD estimates put it at ₹5 lakh per classroom,” he said.

The AAP, in a statement, said the FIR was part of the BJP’s campaign to silence opposition leaders. “One day it’s a case, the next day a raid. As soon as Durgesh Pathak was made Gujarat sah-prabhari, an FIR was filed against him. Sisodia and Jain are targeted the moment they get new roles. This is a strategy to paralyse us,” the statement said.

The Congress said the FIR validated corruption charges it had raised years ago. Delhi Congress chief Devender Yadav called the classroom project “as big a scam as the liquor policy case.” “The Delhi Congress had consistently flagged massive corruption in classroom construction. The FIR confirms that. Justice will only be served when those who misused public money are given the harshest punishment,” he said.

With inputs from Alok KN Mishra and Snehil Sinha