The ‘Sheeshmahal’ controversy that dogged Arvind Kejriwal during his tenure as Delhi Chief Minister has resurfaced — this time in Punjab.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief of misusing Punjab government resources for personal comfort, alleging that he had been allotted a “7-star, two-acre luxury bungalow” in Chandigarh’s Sector 2 from Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s quota.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the Delhi BJP dubbed Kejriwal “Punjab’s Super CM” and claimed that “the man who pretended to be an aam aadmi (common man) has built another Sheesh Mahal.”
The party also shared what it claimed were satellite images of the property, saying, “After vacating the Sheesh Mahal in Delhi, Punjab’s ‘Super CM’ has had an even more magnificent one prepared in Chandigarh.”
Rebel AAP MP Swati Maliwal echoed the BJP’s claims, alleging that Kejriwal was using Punjab government aircraft for personal and party-related travel.
“Yesterday, he boarded a government helicopter from outside his house for Ambala, and from there, a Punjab government private jet took him to Gujarat for party work. The entire Punjab government seems to be serving one man,” she wrote on X.
The AAP swiftly hit back, dismissing the allegations as “fake and fabricated.”
“Ever since the Prime Minister’s fake Yamuna story was exposed, the BJP seems to have lost its cool. Fake Yamuna, fake pollution figures, fake claims of rainfall, and now fake 7-star claims,” the party said in a statement.
AAP argued that the Chandigarh administration falls under the BJP-led Centre’s control, questioning, “If the BJP claims the house was allotted, where is the allotment letter?” The party said the image being circulated was merely of the Punjab chief minister’s camp office.
"By sharing a photo of the (Punjab CM's camp office), the baffled BJP is making all sorts of fake claims," AAP said in a post on X.
The row mirrors last year’s controversy over alleged illegal construction at Kejriwal’s official residence on Flag Staff Road in Delhi, where he was accused of violating norms and spending over Rs 45 crore on renovations. That residence, dubbed the “Sheesh Mahal” by the BJP, had triggered a political storm during the Delhi election campaign.
