New Delhi [India], February 25: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Arvinder Singh Lovely strongly criticized the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) during the Delhi Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, accusing them of undermining the legacy of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar by disrupting the mandatory process of tabling the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report.
Lovely’s comments came after AAP MLAs staged a protest, alleging that the Delhi government had replaced portraits of Dr. Ambedkar with those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in key government offices, including the Delhi Chief Minister’s office and the Assembly. Lovely said that while AAP raised slogans in support of Babasaheb Ambedkar, their actions were contrary to his vision, particularly in relation to constitutional processes.
“This is unfortunate. They are destroying the dreams of Babasaheb. Presenting the CAG report is a constitutional process, and it is mandatory. After they formed the government, they decided not to present any CAG report. There is nothing more unfortunate than this. You are raising slogans of Babasaheb while destroying his dreams,” Lovely remarked in the Assembly.
AAP MLAs Suspended Amid Protest
The uproar in the Assembly led Speaker Vijender Gupta to suspend 12 AAP MLAs, including the Leader of Opposition Atishi and AAP MLA Gopal Rai. Despite the protest, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta went ahead with tabling the CAG report on the Delhi Excise Policy.
Key Findings of the CAG Report on Delhi’s Excise Policy
The “Performance Audit on Regulation and Supply of Liquor in Delhi” report covers the years 2017-18 to 2020-21 and highlights several discrepancies in the way the Delhi Excise Department regulated the supply of liquor. According to the audit, the state government suffered cumulative losses exceeding Rs 2,000 crore due to the 2021-2022 excise policy.
The report further raised questions about the working of the Excise Department and its failure to properly implement its responsibilities, with a total financial implication of approximately Rs 2,026.91 crore as per the audit’s findings.