Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood on Wednesday said Lieutenant-Governor (L-G) V.K. Saxena has directed the Anti-Corruption Branch to investigate an alleged ₹145-crore scam by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) under the Jai Bhim Mukhyamantri Pratibha Vikas Yojana, a scheme meant to provide free coaching to marginalised students.
Addressing a joint press conference with Social Welfare Minister Ravinder Indraj Singh, Mr. Sood said that the AAP government indulged in corruption during the COVID-19 period, using a scheme meant for students from Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) as a cover for massive financial irregularities.
Mr. Sood said the scheme had originally promised free coaching for SC/ST students for exams such as UPSC, NEET, and JEE.
“But unfortunately, AAP leaders indulged in corruption… This is not only an insult to Babasaheb’s vision but also a betrayal of thousands of students who relied on this scheme to shape their future,” he said, vowing that the culprits will not be spared.
Citing data, the Minister said that while 4,900 students were enrolled in 2018 and 2,071 in 2019, the number of students claimed to have been coached between July 2021 and August 2022 shot up dramatically. Despite the scheme’s original budget of ₹15 crore, coaching institutes submitted claims worth ₹145 crore.
‘Fake bills’
Mr. Sood alleged that although data was submitted for nearly 13,000 students, only 3,000 could be verified, with no supporting documents found for the rest.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta echoed the allegations in a post on X, claiming that “serious financial misconduct” had occurred in 2020-21. “The budget of this scheme was only ₹15 crore, but the AAP government forwarded files with fake bills exceeding ₹142 crore,” she wrote.
She also alleged that claims were submitted without supporting documents, applications lacked signatures, and some institutions raised 100% claims in the names of Dalit students who never actually received coaching.
“AAP has insulted the ideals of Babasaheb and tainted the sacred field of education,” Ms. Gupta said, asserting that the Anti-Corruption Branch would investigate the case thoroughly and bring the guilty to justice. The L-G’s office is yet to issue an official statement.
The schemewas launched in 2018 to support students from SC, ST, and OBC communities with an annual family income of less than ₹8 lakh. It aimed to provide free coaching for competitive exams like engineering, medicine, and civil services, with the Delhi government covering the fees.
AAP response
In a sharp rebuttal, AAP issued a statement and urged the BJP to “move beyond rhetoric” and vendetta campaigns and focus on governance.
“They have shut down a functioning model. The electricity, the health services, the education reforms –all halted. Instead of working, BJP leaders spend their days abusing AAP and Arvind Kejriwal. They have no vision, no plan,” it said.
AAP challenged the BJP to inspect all aspects of its infrastructure. “Check every brick in Delhi’s schools, every needle in our Mohalla Clinics. Check the buses, the hospitals – check it all. But after you’re done with your witch-hunt, start doing some real work,” the party said.
Published – July 17, 2025 01:43 am IST
