New Delhi [India], January 13 : Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday lashed out at Delhi's AAP government for delaying the submission of the CAG reports stating that they should have been sent to the Speaker for discussion.
He said that the delayed reports could impact the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. Puri, speaking with ANI, said, "There are as many as 14 CAG reports on issues ranging from finance, public health, liquor, etc... The High Court today said that the CAG reports were to be sent to the Speaker and there should have been a discussion. The delay in submitting the reports raises doubts. If someone does a scam, there will be an impact on the elections."
This comes after the High Court, criticising the Delhi Government said, "The way you have dragged your feet raises doubts about your bona fides."
Earlier in the day, the High Court came heavily down on the Delhi government over the delay in the CAG reports. The court emphasised, "You should have promptly forwarded the reports to the Speaker and initiated a discussion in the House."
The bench of Justice Sachin Datta questioned the Delhi Government's handling of the CAG reports.
"The timeline is clear; you've dragged your feet to prevent the session from happening." The court further remarked.
"The delay in sending the reports to the LG and your handling of the matter raises doubts about your bona fides," it added.
Notably, the CAG report revealed a significant revenue loss of Rs 2,026 crore due to irregularities in the Delhi government's excise policy. The report's findings stated that there were deviations from the objective of the policy, a lack of transparency in pricing, and violations in issuing licenses that were not penalised.
Of the losses worth Rs 2,026 crore to the state exchequer, the loss of Rs 890 crore resulted from the government's failure to re-tender the surrendered licenses before the policy period concluded, according to the report. Moreover, the exemptions granted to the zonal licenses led to the loss of Rs 941 crore.