Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has been given two more weeks time by Lokayukta to respond to allegations of misuse of public funds during last year’s Assembly polls in the national capital.
The deadline was extended after the Chief Minister failed to respond to the notice issued by Lokayukta justice Manmohan Sarin on October 8 to file reply in the matter by October 27.
However, following request from her counsel DB Govardhan, Sarin gave her time till November 11.
The matter has been fixed for further hearing on November 18 as a week’s time has also been given to the complainant, BJP leader Vijender Gupta to file a rejoinder to Dikshit’s reply, said sources in Lokayukta office.
Terming the allegations "prima facie a case of initiating an enquiry," Sarin had sought reply from Dikshit in the matter.
Gupta has accused the Chief Minister of "splurging public and government fund for her advertisement campaign to win the elections last year."
The Lokayukta in his order said. "On perusal of the averments in the complaints, text of advertisements… in my view a prima facie case is made out for initiating an inquiry…" against the respondent.
Gupta, through his lawyer HS Phoolka, alleged that the "expenses on advertisement from 2004-07 remained in the range of Rs 4 crore per year. However, the documents reveal that expenses of advertisement had gone up phenomenally to Rs 10 crores in 2007-08 and to Rs 22.5 crores in 2008-09 just before assembly polls."
To corroborate his allegations, Gupta also placed on record an article penned by the then director Information and Publicity Uday Sahay which detailed the "meticulous campaign strategy by Dikshit to overcome the anti-incumbency factor."