Delhi Assembly Session Live Updates: CAG report reveals Rs 2,000 crore loss to government due to liquor policy

• Atishi
• Gopal Rai
• Veer Singh Dhingan
• Mukesh Ahlawat
• Chaudhary Zubair Ahmed
• Anil Jha
• Vishesh Ravi
• Jarnail Singh

Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta on Tuesday criticized the delay in tabling the CAG report, citing strong High Court observations. He accused the previous AAP government of violating the Constitution by not presenting the report since 2017-18.

Tensions flared in the Assembly as Gupta suspended 12 AAP MLAs, including Leader of Opposition Atishi and Gopal Rai, amid protests during the Lieutenant Governor’s address.

Meanwhile, BJP leaders, including Parvesh Verma and Mohan Singh Bisht, claimed the CAG report would expose AAP’s financial mismanagement. The BJP-led Delhi government is set to present 14 CAG reports, highlighting alleged irregularities under AAP rule.

The Delhi government suffered cumulative losses exceeding Rs 2,000 crore due to the now-scrapped 2021-22 excise policy, largely due to a weak policy framework and deficient implementation, according to a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report tabled in the assembly on Tuesday.The report, one of 14 audit reviews on the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government's performance being presented by the new Rekha Gupta-led administration, has also pointed to violations in the licensing process. It stated that recommendations from an expert panel formed to suggest changes in the policy’s formulation were ignored by then deputy chief minister and excise minister Manish Sisodia.

Leader of Opposition Atishi and 11 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs were suspended from the Delhi assembly on Tuesday after a heated protest over allegations that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had replaced a portrait of Dr BR Ambedkar with that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the chief minister’s office.Following their suspension, Atishi and other AAP leaders staged a protest outside the Delhi assembly. Atishi accused the BJP of disrespecting Dr B.R. Ambedkar and vowed to continue the demonstration until portrait was reinstated. "Is PM Modi bigger than Dr B.R. Ambedkar? We will not stop protesting until Babasaheb's portrait is restored," she said.

The party (AAP) knows nothing except quarrels. No one can remove the portraits of Dr. Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar and Shaheed Bhagat Singh and neither have we removed them. They are doing this kind of drama to divert attention from the CAG report: Delhi minister Manjinder Singh

The blame game played by the previous government in the last 10 years has greatly affected Delhi. My government will work with the centre and other states, according to the principles of competitive and cooperative federalism given by PM Narendra Modi: LG VK Saxena

Soon after forming government in Delhi, the BJP removed Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar's photo and replaced it with PM Modi's photo. Does BJP believe that PM Modi is bigger than Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar? We were pushed out of the House when we raised slogans of Ambedkar. This shows that BJP hates Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar. BJP believes that Narendra Modi is bigger than Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar and we will continue to protest against this from streets to the Assembly: Atishi

BJP has replaced the portrait of Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar with that of PM Modi in the CM office, cabinet ministers office. Is PM Modi bigger than Dr BR Ambedkar?. We will keep on protesting against it until the portrait of Dr BR Ambedkar is put in its place: Delhi LoP Atishi

The AAP government never respected the Constitution and they never presented the CAG report. The newly formed BJP government will work following the Constitution... The CAG report will be presented today: BJP MLA Harish Khurana

Today, the CAG report, which exposed the scams of Arvind Kejriwal's government, will be tabled in the Delhi Assembly. Arvind Kejriwal had kept it hidden for the last 3 years. 14 such reports will be tabled one by one. Arvind Kejriwal had kept the report hidden all this time because he knew his loot, scams, and corruption would be exposed: Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa

CAG report is a list of the black deeds of AAP. We had promised the people of Delhi during the elections that whoever has committed corruption will have to answer. Today, we hope that after the speech of LG, when the CAG report will be tabled, all their black deeds will come before the people of Delhi: Delhi BJP chief Virendraa Sachdeva

The inaugural session of the newly elected legislature commenced on Monday, with the members taking oath of office in a variety of languages. The legislators chose to affirm themselves in Hindi, English, Sanskrit, Urdu, Maithili, and Punjabi using six different languages, reflecting the multicultural character of Delhi Assembly. The proceedings signified a transition of BJP members from the opposition benches to the treasury seats on the right side of the Speaker’s chair after 27 years. Prior to the commencement of the session, BJP member Arvinder Singh Lovely, the most experienced among the 70 MLAs, was sworn in as pro-tem Speaker by lieutenant governor VK Saxena at Raj Niwas.

Chief minister Rekha Gupta Monday dismissed allegations by leader of the opposition Atishi that photographs of Dr Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh had been removed from the CM’s office and replaced with those of PM Modi and the President. “Should the photo of the head of govt not be put up? Should the photo of the President of the country not be put up? Should the photo of Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation, not be put up?” said Gupta. Claiming AAP was using “diversionary tactics”, she alleged, “They are trying to hide their corruption and misdeeds behind Babasaheb Ambedkar and Shaheed Bhagat Singh.”

Leader of the opposition in Delhi Assembly Atishi on Monday accused BJP of having an "anti-Dalit and anti-Sikh mindset". Sharing photographs at a press conference, Atishi said, "This picture is from three months ago, when I was serving as CM in the Delhi Vidhan Sabha office, where the portraits of Babasaheb Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh were displayed. However, during lunch break, when we went to meet CM Rekha Gupta in her office, we saw that these portraits had been removed." Attacking BJP, the former CM said, "Everyone knows the party has always been against Dalits and Sikhs. Today, they have openly demonstrated their deep-seated prejudice before the entire nation. It is shameful the party has replaced their pictures with those of PM Modi and revealed its anti-Dalit and anti-Sikh face."