The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted searches at multiple locations across the national capital in connection with an alleged ₹2,000 crore classroom construction scam that reportedly took place during the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.
According to official sources, the raids were part of a money laundering investigation initiated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), based on a First Information Report (FIR) filed by the Delhi Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).
The ED recently registered the case after taking cognisance of the ACB’s FIR, which was filed on April 30. As part of its probe, the ED has searched at least 37 premises linked to contractors and private entities allegedly involved in the case. The FIR filed by the ACB names senior AAP leaders and former Delhi ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, alleging large-scale financial irregularities in the construction of more than 12,000 classrooms or semi-permanent structures across Delhi government schools. According to sources the accused in the ED’s money laundering case are the same as those named in the ACB complaint.
Following the FIR, AAP accused the ruling BJP of using central agencies like the ACB and ED as tools to target its leaders, claiming that there was no corruption in the classroom construction project. Manish Sisodia, who served as the finance and education minister in the previous government, and Satyendar Jain, who was in charge of the Public Works Department among other portfolios, were both summoned by the ACB for questioning.
Jain has appeared once for questioning, while Sisodia skipped his scheduled appearance and is expected to be summoned again. The AAP dismissed these summons as politically motivated and termed the investigation as “pure politics.”
Both Sisodia and Jain have previously been under investigation by the ED in unrelated money laundering cases. Sisodia was arrested and chargesheeted in connection with the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam, while Jain was taken into custody in 2022 and later chargesheeted in a case involving alleged hawala transactions and possession of disproportionate assets.
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The ACB case emerged after the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) reportedly flagged serious lapses in the classroom construction initiative. The initial complaint was filed in 2019 by Delhi BJP leaders Kapil Mishra, Harish Khurana, and Neelkant Bakshi, who alleged serious financial irregularities in the construction of classrooms across three administrative zones in the city.
The ACB investigation found that the total cost of the project had escalated to ₹2,892 crore, pushing the per-classroom construction cost to ₹24.86 lakh, which far exceeded the standard estimated cost of ₹5 lakh per classroom.
The project was allegedly awarded to 34 contractors, most of whom were reportedly linked to AAP. Although the construction involved semi-permanent structures (SPS) designed to last about 30 years, the costs incurred matched those of reinforced cement concrete (RCC) structures that typically have a lifespan of 75 years.
Additionally, the ACB claimed that both the consultant and architect for the project were appointed without adhering to proper procedures. A report by the Chief Technical Examiner of the CVC pointed to gross violations of the CPWD Works Manual 2014, the General Financial Rules (GFR) 2017, and the CVC’s own guidelines. This report, according to the ACB, was allegedly kept under wraps for nearly three years.
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