Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday slammed the Enforcement Directorate and the Union Government after raids were conducted at former Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj‘s residence in the national capital earlier that morning, referring to the searches as ‘BJP raids’.
ED on Tuesday carried out searches at the residence of AAP leader and former Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj in connection with a money laundering probe linked to alleged irregularities in hospital construction projects in the national capital, ANI reported.
In a post on X, Kejriwal wrote, “The ED raid at Saurabh Bhardwaj’s house is another case of the Modi government misusing agencies. The Modi government has gone after the Aam Aadmi Party. The way “AAP” is being targeted has never been done to any party in history. “AAP” is being targeted because it is the most vocal voice against the Modi government’s wrong policies and corrupt deeds. The Modi government wants to suppress our voice. This will never happen. “AAP” is not one to be scared of these BJP raids. We will continue to raise our voice against wrong policies and corruption in the interest of the country, as always.”
The raids began early morning at 13 locations, including Bhardwaj’s residence, across the Delhi-NCR region, based on a certain tip-off in connection with the case. The search operations are being carried out under Section 17 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).
These searches are in “connection with the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) recorded in the Delhi Hospital Construction Scam, relating to First Information Report (No. 37/2025) dated June 26, 2025, registered by the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB), Delhi Police, against former Health Ministers of GNCT of Delhi, along with private contractors and unknown government officials.”
The ED investigation against Bharadwaj (45), Delhi AAP unit chief and national spokesperson for his party, stems from an FIR registered by Delhi’s Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) in June.
The ACB booked Bharadwaj, his party colleague and ex-health minister Satyendar Jain, private contractors and unknown government officials for alleged corruption in health infrastructure projects by the AAP government led by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.
After the filing of the ACB’s FIR, the AAP alleged blatant misuse of agencies to defame its leaders.
The ED has alleged large-scale corruption and misappropriation of funds in health infrastructure projects under the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD).
According to officials, during 2018-19, 24 hospital projects worth ₹5,590 crore were sanctioned but remain largely incomplete, with significant and unexplained cost escalations.
In one instance, the ₹1,125-crore ICU Hospital Project, which aimed to build seven pre-engineered facilities with 6,800 beds, remains only 50% complete after nearly three years and an expenditure of ₹800 crore, despite being scheduled for completion within six months. ED officials stated that the recent searches were based on evidence gathered during investigations and the FIR, which points to unauthorised constructions, inflated costs, and serious financial irregularities.
(With inputs from agencies)
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