NEW DELHI: M M Khan was murdered for his honesty. Ramesh Kakkar, owner of the eponymous hotel, The Connaught, was arrested for eliminating the NDMC Estate Officer, but the murky nexus of politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen patronising illegal squatting and tax evasion remains untouched. The murder has spilled over beyond Lutyens’ Delhi and raised a political firestorm between the AAP and BJP, which is likely to go on till the MCD polls next year. The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) is owed more than Rs 2,300 crore in back taxes. This includes Rs 800 crore in licence arrears—the reason why Khan was gunned down after refusing to be bribed. “In the MM Khan case, the role of top NDMC officers is under the scanner,” Deputy Commissioner of Police Mandeep Singh Randhawa told The Sunday Standard. It was he who arrested Kakkar on May 18. Sources also said NDMC officers have now submitted a list of names of establishments, politicians, bureaucrats, and businessmen involved in corruption in the civic body for the last two decades.
L’Affaire Connaught Hotel is the tip of the iceberg. Though the NDMC lease for more than 26 big institutions has expired, they continue to occupy the premises. Among these are the Hotel Asian International, Lodhi Garden Restaurant and The Hotel Forte Grand. They have not only sought judicial relief, but have also approached top NDMC officials for extension of their lease. Joint Commissioner of Police R P Upadhyay said the lease for The Connaught was for building a two-star youth hostel. In 2003, NDMC shut it down after realising that it was run purely as a commercial hotel. It reopened later, only to be sealed again in 2015. NDMC sources say Kakkar managed to get its possession back in connivance with top NDMC officers and politicians.
The murder has given Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal a stick to beat the BJP with. He alleged that BJP leader and NDMC vice-chairman Karan Singh Tanwar has constantly opposed the NDMC’s eviction drive against The Connaught Hotel and similar establishments, including squatters in popular market complexes.