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House of gold: Indore contractor's 24-carat gold-plated villa draws fire online; triggers misuse of funds debate

House of gold: Indore contractor's 24-carat gold-plated villa draws fire online; triggers misuse of funds debate

Time of India04-07-2025
Image courtesy: X
A mansion in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, that is nearly covered in 24-carat gold was recently visited by content creator Priyam Saraswat, who is well-known for showcasing unusual residences in India.
He demonstrated rooms with gold-coated walls, ceilings, and even switchboards in the video. A rare collection of vintage and high-end cars is also housed at the mansion. The owner, Anoop Agarwal, a government contractor who constructs roads and bridges, gave Saraswat permission to enter the residence. But there was a lot of criticism directed at the video.
This was followed by a lot of anger on social media as people accused the owner of exploiting public monies for personal luxury.
Saraswat consequently removed the original video. However, after being uploaded by the Kerala Congress's official Twitter account, which questioned the public's silence and called for responsibility from the wealthy contractor, the video reappeared.
"Why are our bridges falling into the river and our highways collapsing?" the political party posted on X (previously Twitter). Here are the answers. A home with gold taps and switches was constructed by an Indore government contractor.
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With the construction of a Gau Shala in his home, he has ED-proofed himself. The ED wouldn't want to come to this gentleman's home if they were to raid the Pani Puri Wala, who worked hard to earn 40 lakhs.
Reacting to the post, a social media user wrote, 'In India, flaunting riches gets a salute, fixing roads gets a shrug. Only the Pani puri wala gets grilled for working hard."
'Will EC, ED, IT raid the house now and investigate how a government contractor can live in such a lavish villa?", said another
A comment read, 'No wonder the condition of Roads in MP is pathetic."
'Why isn't ED doing anything. This man and his CM connections must be investigated immediately, " quipped another.
'That cowshed is definitely built for the video, definitely temporary," claimed in the comment box.
Another person tagged income tax department and added, 'Bridges collapse even before inauguration, and roads get potholes within a year of service because of you people. You create more corruption than you stop."
Anoop Agarwal described the start of his adventure in the now-deleted video. He claimed that his 25-person family only had one petrol pump, but he quickly realized that it wouldn't be sufficient to run everything. He therefore made the decision to work under a government contract. His business gradually began taking on tasks like constructing bridges, highways, and other government buildings.
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