ED raids on Saurabh Bharadwaj's places will reveal extent of loot by previous AAP govt: Virendra Sachdeva

New Delhi, Aug 26 (IANS) Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva on Tuesday said that raids being conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at the residence of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Saurabh Bharadwaj will clarify to what extent the then Arvind Kejriwal government "looted" the health sector of the national capital.

The ED is conducting searches at 13 locations, in addition to Bharadwaj's residence, in connection with a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the construction of hospitals in the national capital.

The search operation at Bharadwaj's residence began in the morning and was still underway at the time of reporting.

In a video message, Sachdeva said, "A raid has been conducted today by the investigation agency on Saurabh Bharadwaj, the Delhi state president of the Aam Aadmi Party and former minister, who is part of the gang of corrupt individuals."

He stated that the BJP has consistently stated that "Arvind Kejriwal and his government have looted Delhi".

"Large-scale corruption was carried out by the then Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj in the construction of hospitals, purchase of medicines and equipment, the result of which is now evident to everyone as the investigative agencies have conducted raids on him," the state BJP chief said.

He said that the AAP leaders, who have "committed massive scams" in the national capital, are now trying to "mislead" the public of other states.

"The facts that will emerge after the investigation agency's action will further expose the extent of how the then Aam Aadmi Party government looted the health sector," Sachdeva added.

According to the sources, the matter is linked to alleged irregularities in several hospital projects in which there were accusations of large-scale financial mismanagement and embezzlement.

The Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) was the first to flag the alleged scam.

The ACB investigation revealed that in 2018-19, as many as 24 hospital projects were sanctioned in Delhi at an estimated cost of around Rs 5,500 crore.

These included 11 greenfield projects and 13 brownfield projects. However, despite approvals, the projects were subjected to unwarranted delays while costs escalated significantly, raising strong suspicions of corruption and financial misconduct.

The Intensive Care Unit hospital was expected to be finished in six months, but after three years, the project was still not completed. Even though Rs 800 crore was spent, only 50 per cent of the work has been completed.

The expenditure for the expansion of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital rose from Rs 488 crore to Rs 1,135 crore without any significant advancements.

The construction work was initiated at several locations without approval, and the contractors' roles have raised suspicions.

The Hospital Information Management System (HIMS) has been awaiting implementation since 2016, amid claims of intentional postponement.

In addition to Bharadwaj, AAP leader Satyendar Jain is also being investigated in this case.

Bharadwaj, who earlier represented the Greater Kailash constituency in the Delhi Assembly, held important portfolios in the previous AAP government, including Health, Urban Development and Water.

--IANS

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