BJP leader Raghav Chadha has denied any link to the alleged Delhi Jal Board sewage treatment plant tender scam, with sources close to him pointing out that his tenure as the board’s vice-chairman ended seven months before the alleged irregularities took place.
The response comes after the arrest of former Delhi minister and AAP leader Satyendar Jain in the case triggered a fresh political confrontation, with the Aam Aadmi Party questioning why Chadha, who left AAP in April 2026, was not being questioned or arrested over the alleged irregularities.
Sources close to Chadha said he served as vice-chairman of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) from March 2, 2020, to March 3, 2022. They said the post has a two-year tenure and that Chadha also resigned as a Delhi MLA in March 2022.
According to the sources, the alleged irregularities relate to October 2022, around seven months after Chadha’s tenure as DJB vice-chairman had ended.
They said the timeline itself contradicts the attempt to associate Chadha with the alleged scam. “AAP’s attempt to drag Shri Raghav Chadha into the Delhi Jal Board STP tender case is a desperate exercise in political diversion. It is a poor effort to deflect attention from the serious allegations of corruption, wrongdoing and scams engulfing AAP’s own leadership,” the sources said.
The remarks came after AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar questioned why Chadha was not being investigated following Jain’s arrest. “BJP themselves had accused Raghav Chadha for these irregularities. Did they arrest Raghav Chadha, did they question Raghav Chadha?” Kakkar said.
“BJP had claimed back in the day that these farzi irregularities were done by Raghav. Why are you not questioning him?” she added.
Kakkar accused the BJP of indulging in “vendetta politics” and attempting to threaten the AAP.
CHADHA CAMP QUESTIONS BASIS OF AAP ALLEGATION
Sources close to Chadha also pointed to the investigative agency’s findings in the case, saying the agency’s press release identified the then Water Minister and ex-officio chairman of the DJB, the then DJB CEO, a DJB consultant, the then chief engineer and several private individuals and entities.
The sources said Chadha was not identified or assigned any role in the agency’s findings. “Shri Raghav Chadha is not identified or assigned any role. AAP cannot fill this evidentiary vacuum with political innuendo,” the sources said.
They argued that merely invoking Chadha’s name in the political debate could not establish his involvement in the alleged offence. “Innuendo is not evidence, political theatre is not proof, and invoking someone else’s name cannot establish criminal liability,” the sources said.
The Chadha camp also maintained that linking him to the case was an attempt to divert attention from the allegations against Jain and other accused in the case.
The sources reiterated that Chadha’s tenure as DJB vice-chairman ended in March 2022, while the alleged scam relates to October 2022.
WHAT IS THE DELHI JAL BOARD CASE?
The Delhi government’s Anti-Corruption Branch arrested six people in connection with the alleged irregularities, including Satyendar Jain and former DJB CEO Udit Prakash Rai.
The case was registered on May 11, 2024, following a complaint by the Directorate of Vigilance. The allegations relate to large-scale irregularities, manipulation of tender conditions and criminal conspiracy in the tendering process for the augmentation and upgradation of sewage treatment plants under the Delhi Jal Board. The investigation concerns alleged manipulation of the tender process and the role of officials, consultants and private entities.
Jain has denied the allegations and has alleged that the case is politically motivated.
The arrest has now brought renewed political focus on the functioning of the DJB under the previous AAP government, with BJP leaders accusing the former government of corruption and demanding that the investigation examine the role of senior party leaders.
BJP TARGETS PREVIOUS AAP GOVERNMENT
Delhi BJP president Harsh Malhotra alleged that DJB accounts had not been audited for 10 years and claimed that there was an alleged scam worth nearly Rs 60,000 crore. He said the complete investigation report should be made public. BJP MP Manoj Tiwari alleged that administrative corruption under the Kejriwal government was responsible for the failure to install sewage treatment plants on drains and the continued pollution of the Yamuna.
BJP MP Bansuri Swaraj alleged that public money meant for sewage treatment facilities was siphoned off through an alleged scam involving the then AAP government, its leaders, officials and contractors.
Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal also described the DJB case as serious and alleged that the Kejriwal government had prioritised corruption over cleaning the Yamuna.
BJP leaders Praveen Khandelwal and Praveen Shankar Kapoor accused the AAP leadership of providing political patronage and rejected the party’s claim that Jain’s arrest was linked to the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections.
AAP CALLS JAIN ARREST POLITICALLY MOTIVATED
The AAP has rejected the allegations and alleged that Jain’s arrest was politically motivated and linked to the Punjab polls. AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal questioned Union Home Minister Amit Shah over alleged pressure on the investigating agency to arrest Jain.
Jain had appeared before the Delhi government’s ACB on June 6 last year for questioning in the case after being summoned by the agency.
AAP Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj also questioned Jain’s arrest and described the case as “fake”.
Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh alleged that the BJP was facing a “crushing defeat” in Punjab and had Jain arrested out of frustration.
Singh said Jain, who is the party’s Punjab sah-prabhari or co-in-charge, had been working to strengthen the organisation in the state. He alleged that the BJP was attempting to obstruct the work of the Bhagwant Mann government.
Singh also said AAP leaders had been arrested before elections in the past and claimed that Jain would be acquitted again.
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Published On:
Aug 20, 2026 00:07 IST
