Delhi LG directs AAP to pay Rs 97 cr spent on ads

In a setback to the Arvind Kejriwal-led government, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal has ordered recovery of Rs 97 crore from the AAP, saying the amount was “splurged” by the administration on advertisements in violation of the Supreme Court guidelines.

An inquiry into the spendings on the advertisements on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party has been ordered, and Chief Secretary M M Kutty has been asked to fix the responsibility for the wrongdoing.

A Centre-appointed three-member committee headed by former chief election commissioner B B Tandon had earlier indicted the Delhi government for misusing public funds. Of the Rs 97 crore, the government has so far paid Rs 42 crore to the advertisement agencies, officials said.

Baijal has directed the chief secretary to get the amount reimbursed from the AAP. The rest would be given by the AAP to the agencies, his order read. In its report, the Comptroller and Auditor General had also found that the AAP government spent Rs 29 crore in releasing advertisements outside Delhi, which was beyond its responsibility. Baijal’s action just before the bypolls to the Rajouri Garden Assembly seat and elections to three municipal corporations was used by the Congress to target the AAP on Thursday.