BJP, AAP in war of words after CAG report claims Rs 2,026 crore revenue loss

A purported report of the Comptroller and Audit General (CAG) pegging a revenue loss of Rs 2,026 crore to the government due to “irregularities” in the now-scrapped Delhi liquor policy has brought the excise scam to the centre stage of the electoral battle between the Aam Aadmi Party and the BJP.

The findings of the alleged leaked report are now being used by the BJP to corner the ruling party. At a press conference on Saturday, BJP leader and former minister Anurag Thakur targeted AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal over the CAG report. 

“Arvind Kejriwal is the kingpin of the whole scam," said Thakur. “Who will be the CM face from the AAP? There isn’t a single face who is clean of charges of corruption, and who is not enjoying profits from the scam”. 

Thakur also questioned the AAP on why they had not allowed the report to be presented in Parliament. 

Meanwhile, the AAP has rubbished the alleged CAG findings, terming them as fake. AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh asked at a press conference, “Was it drafted in the BJP office?” 

Singh dismissed the report, calling it another propaganda of the saffron party. 

The purported loss and allegations are likely to keep the atmosphere charged in the run-up to the assembly polls scheduled for February 6. The charges highlight irregularities, lack of transparency, and policy violations among the reasons for the whooping loss. 

The liquor policy was introduced in 2021 by the AAP government aiming to simplify trade and increase revenue. But, soon, the policy was scrapped due to financial irregularities and corruption charges. 

During the investigation, then chief minister Kejriwal along with former deputy CM Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh was arrested by the CBI and the ED but released on bail later. 

Meanwhile, the investigation into the Delhi liquor scam case is still underway.