Bungalow battle turns ugly in run-up to polls

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took out protests and counterprotests as the shrill battle over alleged over-spending on the 6 Flag Staff Road bungalow where Arvind Kejriwal lived as chief minister played out on the streets of the national capital a day after elections for the state assembly were announced.

- Paras Singh

The AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj on Wednesday morning attempted to enter the bungalow, which the state Public Works Department (PWD) reclaimed on Monday, three months after allotting it to chief minister Atishi, on the grounds that she had still not taken physical possession.

The bungalow was, however, cordoned off by banks of police personnel and metal barricades, with the fortifications forcing the group to instead hold a 10-minute sit-in protest outside the house. They then went towards the Prime Minister's official residence, 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, demanding that it be thrown open to the public "to reveal the true cost of its construction".

"We wanted to contest the elections on issues related to water, and electricity. But the BJP wants people to vote on the basis of 'aawas-niwas'," Bhardwaj said.

"The BJP is spreading lies across the country that a golden toilet, swimming pools and minibar are present in the Delhi CM's house. We will also go to check the Prime Minister's Raj Mahal," said Singh.

The BJP, in the mean time, marched to AB 17, Mathura Road, a bungalow allocated to Atishi since her time as a minister in the state cabinet, in a bid to counter the chief minister's claims a day ago that the central government "evicted" her from Flag Staff Road and left her "homeless".

"6 Flag Staff Road is not a designated Delhi CM resident, unlike the Prime Minister's house. How many bungalows does she need?" said Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva at the protest site outside the Mathura Road house.