New Delhi, 30 June (H.S.): The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday questioned the Delhi government and the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) over the alleged Rs 650 crore Health Department scam, demanding the immediate arrest of the principal accused, Rajeev Rangeela.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, AAP's Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj said that Rajeev Rangeela has been prominently named in the ACB's First Information Report (FIR), registered on June 2, yet no action has been taken to arrest him.

Bharadwaj said the entire FIR revolves around a single individual. According to the FIR, Rajeev Rangeela allegedly floated multiple companies under different names to manipulate the government procurement process and was involved in corrupt practices related to the purchase of medical equipment, medicines, and other supplies for the Health Department.

Accusing the government of facilitating irregularities, Bharadwaj alleged that the technical and financial conditions of tenders were deliberately designed in a manner that prevented genuine companies from participating, ultimately ensuring that contracts were awarded to selected firms. He further claimed that medical equipment available in the market at much lower prices was procured by the government at several times its actual cost, causing substantial losses to the public exchequer.

The Delhi AAP chief said Rajeev Rangeela has been named repeatedly in the FIR and has been identified as a named accused. Despite this, he has not been arrested, raising serious questions about the investigation. He asked why no action has been taken against the person who, according to the FIR, is at the centre of the alleged scam.

Bharadwaj also rejected Chief Minister Rekha Gupta's claim that the case was registered on the basis of her complaint. He said the FIR makes no reference to any complaint from the Chief Minister's Office and clearly states that the case was registered on the basis of source-based information.

He further alleged that Rajeev Rangeela had been active in the Health Department since previous governments and had also attempted to establish influence during the Arvind Kejriwal-led administration. However, he claimed that the then AAP government did not allow those efforts to succeed.

During the press conference, Bharadwaj also raised concerns over the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. He alleged that complete details of deleted voters were not being shared with political parties, thereby affecting the verification process.

The Aam Aadmi Party demanded the immediate arrest of Rajeev Rangeela and called for complete transparency in the ACB's investigation into the alleged scam.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar