The Delhi Assembly’s ongoing “Phansi Ghar” controversy escalated on Thursday as Speaker Vijender Gupta referred the matter to the Privileges Committee, announcing that former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia will be summoned over their alleged role in the issue.
Gupta said the decision was made “based on the sense of the House” and aimed at restoring the historical Assembly building to its original state. He called the previous government’s actions a “grave insult to history” and “a major fraud.”
“The fake ‘Phansi Ghar’ and tunnel, along with unauthorised alterations to a heritage building, are a betrayal of public sentiment and an affront to the dignity of the House. History will never forgive such misdeeds,” he said.
The Speaker stated that during an August 9, 2022 event marking the Quit India Movement anniversary, a plaque naming Kejriwal and Sisodia was installed in connection with the “Phansi Ghar.” The House has now resolved to remove the plaque.
Former Speaker Ram Niwas Goel and former Deputy Speaker Rakhi Birla will also be summoned, as the inauguration occurred under their watch. “The Assembly’s dignity was compromised, and public emotion was manipulated. This is a serious matter of privilege and cannot be ignored,” Gupta stressed.
The row intensified after Delhi Minister and BJP leader Parvesh Verma visited the so-called British-era “Phansi Ghar” on Wednesday, accusing Kejriwal of distorting history. “When this building was being constructed, this place was an elevator… Arvind Kejriwal has completely distorted such a significant history. The photos, maps, and documents we have prove there were no gallows here,” Verma claimed.
The “Phansi Ghar,” located within the Delhi Assembly premises, was opened to the public by the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, but its historical authenticity has since been called into question.
