“Dumbest Chief Minister”: Delhi Minister Slams AAP Chief Over ‘Phansi Ghar’

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A political firestorm erupted in the Delhi Assembly after Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa launched a scathing attack on Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, calling him the “dumbest Chief Minister” over the alleged fabrication of a “phansi ghar” (hanging house) on the Assembly premises. The controversy centers on a structure that the previous AAP government renovated and inaugurated as a British-era execution chamber, which the current administration claims was merely a service room.

The structure, which Kejriwal’s government unveiled in 2022 at a cost of approximately ₹1 crore, was presented as a site where freedom fighters were executed. However, the current government, citing a 1912 map and historical records, has dismissed the claim as “historically baseless.” According to Speaker Vijender Gupta, the space was actually a “tiffin room” used by British officers. The discovery has prompted a major dispute, with the current administration ordering the structure to be dismantled before an upcoming All-India Speakers’ Conference.

During a heated assembly session, Manjinder Singh Sirsa accused Kejriwal of “insulting national martyrs” by turning a tiffin room into a fake memorial. “Mr. Kejriwal has developed such a bad habit of spinning fanciful stories,” Sirsa stated, mocking the structure’s design, which featured two lift rooms. He added that the entire project was an “incredible display of foolishness.”

Other ministers joined the criticism, with Kapil Mishra alleging that the AAP government had “tampered with history” for political theatrics. He called the project a “staged drama” in the name of freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and Rajguru, and a misuse of public funds.

In defense of the memorial, AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha argued that many execution sites from that period were not officially documented. He pointed out that the 1912 map shows the contested structure as the only double-story building consistent with a hanging chamber and called for the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to investigate the site. The escalating clash led to the expulsion of the Leader of the Opposition, Atishi, and several other AAP MLAs from the House. The controversy has sparked a broader debate about historical authenticity and the use of public funds for political narratives.