Chadha, Parvesh claim ‘Sheesh Mahal 2’; AAP says photos fake 

The AAP rejected the accusations almost immediately, and said the photos of the alleged home shown by the BJP were “fake”, and had been taken off Pinterest, a digital ‘pinboard’ on which social media users post images.
Chadha claimed it was the controversy over the so-called Sheesh Mahal that had led to the AAP’s defeat in the Delhi Assembly polls last year.

“…[Now] Sheesh Mahal Part Two has come to Delhi. Some pictures of it have surfaced. If there was one major reason for the Aam Aadmi Party’s loss in the Delhi elections, Sheesh Mahal was one of them… Not even a year has passed since the Delhi elections, and Sheesh Mahal Part Two has come. I wonder how the few remaining good workers of the Aam Aadmi Party will respond when people in the streets and localities ask them questions about Sheesh Mahal,” Chadha, who led an exodus of seven AAP Rajya Sabha MPs to the BJP on Friday, said.

The BJP has been referring to the 6 Flagstaff Road, Civil Lines, bungalow that was allotted to then-CM Kejriwal in 2015, as “Sheesh Mahal”, pointing to the “extravagant luxuries” on the premises.

At a press conference at the BJP’s national headquarters, PWD Minister Singh alleged Kejriwal had become habituated to living lavishly.

“Taking shelter under the Anna Movement, Mahatma Gandhi, taking support of the photo of martyr Bhagat Singh… Kejriwal came to power and built a lavish house for himself and did nothing for the people,” Singh alleged. He added, “We are going to show Sheesh Mahal 2 of Delhi’s Rehman dakait,” referring to Kejriwal by the name of a character in the two Dhurandhar films.

Singh then showed pictures, allegedly from the Type VIII bungalow at 95 Lodhi Estate allotted to Kejriwal by the Centre, purportedly of the amenities and interior decorations.

Singh alleged that the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) does not spend so lavishly on the government accommodation that it maintains, and it seemed as though “private money” had been spent on the home.
Singh claimed that the AAP chief’s residence has five bedrooms and four drawing rooms, and amenities superior to any other bungalow in Lutyens’ Delhi, including those of leaders of the Congress and DMK.

“We are astonished after seeing these pictures,” he said, referring to “Sheesh Mahal 2”. Singh alleged that it was because of Kejriwal’s “greed” that “honest” leaders were leaving the AAP.

Hitting back, former CM and senior AAP leader Atishi posted on X: “All the pictures released by Parvesh ji are fake. They are not pictures of Kejriwal ji’s house. To find out whose house is luxurious, Rekha Gupta ji and L-G sahib should open their own houses, and Kejriwal ji will open his house. The public will decide for itself.”

She added: “…The funny thing is that these pictures aren’t even of Kejriwal ji’s house, but downloaded from Pinterest!… When they can’t find anything against Kejriwal ji, they’re making false claims based on images picked up from the Internet. Parvesh ji: You could’ve used AI for this instead; theft doesn’t get caught that quickly.”

Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, too, rejected the allegations as baseless, and warned that both the PWD Minister and any news channels that broadcast the fake images would face defamation suits.

Sanjay Singh challenged Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu, and the Minister to open their own homes to the public. Kejriwal would do the same, Sanjay Singh said, and “The public will then know whose house is luxurious.”

“The LG, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, Delhi government Minister Parvesh Verma, and Arvind Kejriwal’s houses should be opened to the public. People should visit and decide for themselves whose house is more luxurious. By releasing such fake images and spreading false propaganda, the BJP is still resorting to the same worn-out tactics,” Sanjay Singh said.