Kejriwal, Sisodia to be summoned by privileges committee over phansi-ghar

New Delhi: A day after CM Rekha Gupta demanded that former CM Arvind Kejriwal repay ₹1.04 crore allegedly spent by his AAP government on building a “fake” British-era ‘phansi-ghar’ inside the Delhi Assembly, Speaker Vijender Gupta announced on Thursday that the matter would be sent to the House Privileges Committee.

The committee will summon Kejriwal, along with former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, ex-Speaker Ram Niwas Goel, and former Deputy Speaker Rakhi Birla.

According to the Speaker, detailed debates backed by verified evidence and documents had shown that crores of rupees were used to construct fake gallows and publish misleading advertisements within the Assembly premises, TNIE reported.

The Speaker said the AAP was given three days to provide evidence to justify the expenditure on the structure, but failed to do so, which, in his view, reinforced the belief that the act was intentional and fraudulent.

He noted that authenticated records from the National Archives of India—including a 1912 map of the Assembly premises—along with research from reputable institutions, confirmed that no gallows had ever existed in the building, nor was there any tunnel connecting it to the Red Fort, contrary to the claims made.

Gupta recalled that when the structure was built in 2022 to coincide with the Quit India Movement anniversary on 9 August, it had evoked patriotic emotions in him and other opposition members. However, after taking over as Speaker and reviewing verified findings from credible archives and research bodies, he realised the so-called gallows was entirely fabricated.