Classroom case: Probe said to focus on Jain; Sisodia's role also under scanner
Former Public Works Department (PWD) minister Satyendar Jain is the primary focus of the investigation being carried out by Delhi government's Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) into the alleged irregularities in the construction of classrooms, while formed deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia is being probed for giving post-facto approval to the project, officials aware of the matter said on Wednesday.
Jain has been summoned to appear before the bureau on June 6, and Sisodia on June 9. Both Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders are to be questioned at the ACB's office in central Delhi.
Senior ACB officials said the investigation was launched based on statements by contractors and architects, many of whom have pointed to Jain's direct involvement in procedural lapses and financial mismanagement. 'We will be able to make a definitive statement on their roles only after the probe is complete and the charge sheet is filed,' said one official.
As for Sisodia, investigators said he granted post-facto approval for the project in 2018-19—nearly three years after the construction was completed. He also allotted deposit work for the project, a move that may not in itself be criminal, but is under scrutiny.
'Post-facto approvals are retroactive decisions often taken without prior sanction. Similarly, in deposit work, one department provides funds to another, and execution is the latter's responsibility. These are procedural acts. But we are probing deeper to determine if his actions were merely procedural or indicative of culpability,' said an investigator, requesting anonymity.
According to ACB, the alleged irregularities occurred during the AAP government's drive to expand classroom infrastructure in Delhi's government-run schools. The case concerns the construction of 12,748 semi-permanent classrooms across multiple school campuses. The project was initially valued at ₹860 crore, but subsequent cost escalations—largely carried out without fresh tenders or adherence to procurement norms—brought the total to over ₹2,800 crore.
ACB's April 30 FIR names both Jain and Sisodia and invokes Section 13(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, along with IPC Sections 409 (criminal breach of trust) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy), following clearance under Section 17-A of the POC Act.
Summons issued to the two leaders cite their roles in the decision-making process and ask them to provide written submissions and supporting documents. 'Allegations have been levelled against several then-government functionaries, including you by name... Non-compliance with this notice may attract legal proceedings,' the notice reads.
Both Jain and Sisodia have denied wrongdoing in earlier public statements.
Officials said a key part of the investigation is focused on how consultants and architects were appointed without following Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) guidelines or the CPWD Works Manual. Cost escalations were allegedly pushed through by these consultants without inviting fresh bids, thereby bypassing competitive tendering.
A senior official involved in the probe said, 'Contracts worth ₹860 crore were awarded, and then inflated by up to 90%, eventually reaching nearly ₹2,892 crore. A sum of ₹205 crore from this escalation was for what were termed 'richer specifications'—upgrades that had no financial justification or transparency.'
Investigators further allege that although the classrooms were built as semi-permanent structures (SPS)—designed to last about 30 years—the cost per classroom averaged ₹24.86 lakh, nearly five times the market cost of ₹5 lakh per room. 'That figure is comparable to what would be expected for fully reinforced concrete (RCC) buildings with a lifespan of 75 years,' said one official. 'No justification was provided for why SPS was chosen over permanent structures if the cost was almost the same.'
Another revelation that has drawn serious concern is the concealment of a report by the Chief Technical Examiner (CTE) of the CVC. The report, issued in February 2020, flagged several procurement violations and showed how amendments made after contracts were awarded contributed to massive financial losses. However, it was allegedly kept under wraps for nearly three years.
The investigation was prompted by complaints filed by BJP leaders, who alleged that the AAP government manipulated costs and procedures to favour select contractors.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
an hour ago
- Hans India
AAP leaders will face action for scams exposed by CAG reports: Delhi CM Rekha Gupta
New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which indulged in "wrongdoings" while in power in the national capital, will surely face legal action on scams which have been exposed by the CAG report, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Friday. Addressing mediapersons after a visit to a government school in north Delhi's Haiderpur village, CM Gupta said the previous Arvind Kejriwal government created an "artificial education system" under which even the buildings were so weak that they came crumbling down within two years. Pointing to the village school's building, built in 2018 and declared unusable within a few years, she said, "Action is still pending on the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports... Their scams have just come to light. Once the law takes its course and action is initiated, only then will the proceedings against them begin." "What I just showed you was built in 2018 by the respected Kejriwal government, but it was lost after just two years because it was an artificial system," she said. The CM also targeted the much-touted education model of the previous AAP government and said, "Haiderpur village is a densely populated area, but even today, there is no English medium school or school teaching science. If children from this village or colony want to study science, where will they go?" She slammed the previous government and legislator for their "failure" to provide an English-medium school with a science stream in the village. "This speaks volumes about the direction in which their so-called education policy was moving," she said. Apart from criticising the poor quality of construction of government school buildings, she also lashed out at the AAP government for not making provisions for playgrounds. "There are zero sports facilities," CM Gupta said. "From security to sanitation, the state of government schools is pathetic. There is a severe staff shortage – including school principals," she said. The Chief Minister said the BJP government has started the process for filling up posts of principals and sprucing up security and sanitation facilities. "About 75 CM Shree schools will be developed across the city to give better education to students. These schools will be better than private schools," she said. CM Gupta also slammed the previous AAP government for launching a Board of its own in the city and maintained that the mistake will be rectified. She said the move has made Delhi students less capable of competing in other states and seeking admission in educational institutes outside the national capital.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Abhyanthara Kuttavali movie review: Asif Ali film claims to spotlight ‘issues faced by men'; but is that its true intent?
Abhyanthara Kuttavali movie review: At a crucial moment in debutant director Sethunath Padmakumar's Abhyanthara Kuttavali, Sahadevan (Asif Ali) breaks the fourth wall and tells the audience directly, 'Don't bother reacting; after all, it's a man who died.' He also, during a court hearing, comments on the rising number of suicide cases among men in the country, particularly owing to 'marriage-related problems'. While the well-being of every person, regardless of caste, gender, race or creed, is equally important, and many experts have pointed out that patriarchy harms everyone, including men, Abhyanthara Kuttavali positions itself as an attempt to spotlight issues faced by men. Particularly focusing on how 'fake cases' are slapped on them without humane consideration. However, in all honesty, the film ends up being a brazen attempt to overlook and invisibilise the harassment and crimes women have faced for centuries, mostly at the hands of men, by reducing it all to three cases (including two subplots) told through a masculinist lens, by completely villainising the female characters. Although his marriage to Nayana (Thulasi) was a joyous occasion for Sahadevan, his happiness was short-lived. He soon ends up at the Anthikad police station after she files a complaint accusing him of demanding more dowry and physically abusing her. As a result, the police register a case against him under Section 498A of the IPC (now Sections 85 and 86 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita). As Sahadevan narrates to the police the 'truths' behind the incidents mentioned in the complaint, Abhyanthara Kuttavali cuts to flashbacks, in which we are shown that Nayana, though seemingly happy, has been keeping a distance from Sahadevan since day one. They barely even communicate, let alone have physical intimacy. Nayana soon tells Sahadevan that she wishes to pursue higher studies in the Netherlands, which would help settle there too, and suggests selling the gold ornaments her parents gifted her to fund it. When he objects, she is shown injuring herself. Her parents soon arrive and take her back home, following which she files the complaint. Once the case reaches the court, Sahadevan meets two other men — Peter (Sidharth Bharathan) and Makkar (Harisree Ashokan) — who are also dealing with unfair cases filed against them by their wife and daughter-in-law, respectively, as the system 'only favours the women'. The remainder of the film follows Sahadevan's efforts to prove his innocence. Although Abhyanthara Kuttavali mentions at the start that it is a 'work of fiction', the movie leaves no opportunity to generalise things and give good conduct certificates to men. This is achieved by cleverly portraying the male characters as noble and good-natured, albeit with some flaws like occasional drinking, while most of the women are depicted as apathetic, manipulative and often 'gold diggers'. From Sahadevan, his father Menon (Balachandran Chullikkad), and his friends Yudas (Anand Manmadhan) and Deshavasi (Azees Nedumangad) to Peter and Makkar, all the men are portrayed with sympathy, their moral grey areas conveniently omitted. Even Viswanathan (Jagadeesh), Nayana's lawyer, is ultimately shown in a positive light. In contrast, nearly all the female characters, except for elderly women who conform to the patriarchal norms of the 'ideal mother', are presented as greedy and lacking compassion. To reinforce this, the film even includes a scene where a woman is shown asking Yudas about his financial assets in detail during a pennukaanal (matchmaking visit), prompting him to give a lecture on how women should fend for themselves. In another instance, one of the few self-reliant women in the film, Anila (Shreya Rukmini), an assistant to Sahadevan's advocate, is shown sitting silently in court during the only time she appears on her senior's behalf without speaking up for her client. Although the scene suggests that she is too inexperienced and intimidated to argue in front of Viswanathan, prompting Sahadevan to represent himself, it inadvertently implies that even women who do have a voice choose not to speak up when men are the victims, leaving the latter to fight for themselves. The film is, in fact, packed with similar stereotypical and misogynistic narrative devices that reduce the complex topic of 'issues faced by men' to 'women are misusing the laws (and the freedom they have been 'given')'. It fails to even acknowledge the structural and systemic challenges men face within a patriarchal and elitist society, where only the rich and affluent wield real power. Towards the end, seemingly in an attempt to suggest that the film isn't anti-women, Abhyanthara Kuttavali shows Nayana and one of her friends briefly addressing their life struggles. 'Interestingly', this is one of the few occasions wherein the movie gives the women the chance to narrate their stories. Almost all other times, we are only shown the men's versions. While Nayana's friend shares how she lost a hand due to violence inflicted by her father, Nayana herself recounts how harassment by a teacher made her detest men and marriage altogether, prompting the two to decide to move abroad together and live in freedom. Nayana mentions this as the reason why she agreed to marry Sahadevan, as it would give her complete ownership of the gold gifted by her parents, which would help them fund their dream. However, their stories appear only as passing references, quickly dropped after five minutes. Just a (rhetorical) question to the makers: what about the heinous crimes faced by these women? It is certain that these were only the tip of the iceberg of the torments they faced in life, including many forms of daily sexual harassment. Were their sufferings not as important as Sahadevan's to get more screentime and a bit of empathy? While the film addresses the issue of false cases being filed against men, which in no way should be encouraged, it conveniently overlooks the many, many, many instances of women facing physical and emotional abuse within their own homes, the vast majority of which go unreported. A low conviction rate in such cases does not automatically imply that all cases are fabricated. It's high time we acknowledged that reality. By presenting a one-sided narrative, writer-director Sethunath Padmakumar ensures that Abhyanthara Kuttavali caters to a male audience, particularly those who blindly believe that men's victimhood exists solely because there are legal protections for the oppressed. The film offers these viewers enough 'goosebumps-inducing' moments, especially through quite a few dialogues that denounce alimony. Had men opened their mouths and moved their fingers as diligently and ferociously as they did following the Bengaluru techie suicide of December 2024, the world might have been a better place for all by now. Although Asif Ali delivers a neat performance as Sahadevan, it can't be called impactful, largely because the film relies heavily on dialogues to convey his emotions rather than allowing his acting to speak for itself. Nonetheless, there are moments in Abhyanthara Kuttavali where Asif's strength as a performer in communicating intense emotions through restrained acting shines. Despite limited screen time, Harisree Ashokan makes a strong impression as Makkar. Azees Nedumangad and Anand Manmadhan provide some comic relief, though not all the jokes land consistently. Thulasi, as Nayana, is unfortunately underwhelming. There are several moments in the movie, especially those meant to depict her anger or sorrow, where her portrayal comes across as caricatured. Rahul Raj's background score, however, does manage to elevate Abhyanthara Kuttavali to some extent and prevents it from slipping entirely into preachy territory. Abhyanthara Kuttavali movie cast: Asif Ali, Jagadeesh, Harisree Ashokan, Sidharth Bharathan, Thulasi, Shreya Rukmini Abhyanthara Kuttavali movie director: Sethunath Padmakumar Abhyanthara Kuttavali movie rating: 1.5 stars Anandu Suresh is a Senior sub-editor at Indian Express Online. He specialises in Malayalam cinema, but doesn't limit himself to it and explores various aspects of the art form. He also pens a column titled Cinema Anatomy, where he delves extensively into the diverse layers and dimensions of cinema, aiming to uncover deeper meanings and foster continuous discourse. Anandu previously worked with The New Indian Express' news desk in Hyderabad, Telangana. You can follow him on Twitter @anandu_suresh_ and write (or send movie recommendations) to him at ... Read More
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Loan scam: Four convicted including ex-bank manager for illegally sanctioning funds to fictitious self-help groups in Trichy
Image used for representative purpose only MADURAI: The II Additional District Court ( CBI cases) in Madurai on Thursday convicted four persons, including a then senior manager of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), for sanctioning loans illegally without following proper procedures to fictitious SHGs, thereby causing a loss of Rs 3.38 crore to the bank in Trichy district. The prosecution's case is that the first accused, B Ravichandran, was working as a senior manager in IOB's Chinthamani branch in Trichy district. Rajaram and Usha were office bearers, and Kalpana and Lavanya were workers at an NGO called Kurinji Social Welfare Society in Trichy. Ravichandran conspired with the other accused persons and created fictitious SHGs with fictitious persons as members and opened SB accounts in the name of the SHGs. The SHGs availed loans ranging from Rs 4.25 lakh to Rs 5 lakh between June 2012 and March 2013. Ravichandran did not verify the existence of the SHGs and their members, nor the genuineness of the signatures of the members, and granted loans to 73 SHGs sponsored by Kurinji Social Welfare Society through Rajaram and Kalpana, thereby causing a wrongful loss of Rs 3.38 crore to the bank. Based on the complaint of bank authorities, the CBI, Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB), Chennai, registered a case against Ravichandran, Rajaram, Usha, Kalpana, and Lavanya for offences under various sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act. The Additional District Judge, S Shunmugavel, convicted and sentenced Ravichandran to undergo seven years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 21 lakh on him. The judge convicted and sentenced Rajaram to undergo seven years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 29.63 lakh on him. The judge convicted and sentenced Kalpana and Lavanya to undergo three years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 11 lakh each on them. The judge acquitted Usha in the case. The judge further directed the CBI to collect the fine amount from the four accused persons by attachment of their properties and sell them in a public auction. The judge directed that the recovered fine amount shall be paid to the IOB, Chinthamani branch in Trichy. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Eid wishes , messages , and quotes !
