New Delhi: Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood on Wednesday rejected claims by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of irregularities in the purchase of bicycles under the Vidya Vahini scheme, saying the procurement was carried out on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) through the platform’s automated bidding mechanism and in accordance with statutory rules.
Minister stresses GeM transparency
At a media briefing, Sood said more than 3,000 girl students received bicycles in the first phase of the programme and that the contract award followed GeM’s pre-set eligibility and evaluation criteria. He maintained that tenders with restrictive clauses are rejected by the system and that no complaint was recorded on the GeM portal during the active bidding window.
“Our bicycles are bought from GeM. GeM has been a transparent portal for 10 years,”
Sood told reporters that bids which include biased or restrictive terms cannot proceed and that the GeM platform selects the lowest eligible bidder (L1) through its automated process.
Response to shifting opposition figures
The minister accused AAP of altering its figures in successive statements about alleged commissions and losses. He outlined a sequence of changing percentages and amounts that, he said, showed the opposition was politically motivated rather than raising consistent factual concerns.
| Date (as cited by Sood) | Figure or allegation |
|---|---|
| 3 August | 70% commission (alleged) |
| 6 August | 40% commission or a claimed loss of ₹36 crore out of an alleged ₹90 crore |
| 7 August | Revised figures to 43% and 66% |
| 8 August | 75% figure |
While Sood did not provide independent audit figures at the briefing, he asked the opposition to substantiate its claims on the GeM record and emphasised that the department followed codal formalities throughout the process.
Officials followed codal formalities, minister says
The minister reiterated that Education Department officials adhered to statutory procedures and that the tender was awarded to the lowest eligible bidder as determined by GeM. He said the portal’s checks ensure transparency and prevent tenders with restrictive clauses from advancing.
- Sood stated that no vendor or other party filed a complaint on GeM during the bidding window.
- He said the procurement process was subject to the parameters prescribed on the portal.
- He described the AAP allegations as politically driven and inconsistent in numbers over several days.
Sood also drew a contrast with prior public controversies raised by AAP, calling their current campaign a theatrical effort to mislead citizens. He referenced earlier queries from some party leaders about a different women-centric government payment scheme, though he did not elaborate on procedural links between the two matters.
Political context and next steps
The dispute comes amid heightened scrutiny of government welfare schemes in the national capital and frequent exchanges between the ruling party and opposition in Delhi. AAP has been vociferous on multiple governance issues; the Education Minister’s remarks indicate the Delhi government intends to rely on GeM documentation to disprove the opposition’s claims.
As of the briefing, the Education Department had not released an independent audit or a full procurement dossier to the media. Sood said that the GeM records, which log tender text, bidder responses and any complaints, can be examined to verify the sequence of events and the selection of the L1 vendor.
Opposition leaders have not been quoted in Sood’s statements; AAP’s specific reply to the minister’s comments was not available at the time of filing. The matter may move to formal inquiry or legislative questioning if either side pursues further action or presents additional documentation in the Assembly or to auditing authorities.
For residents and stakeholders, the minister’s emphasis on GeM highlights that public procurement records are maintained online and can form the basis of verification in any future probe.
Aditya Khanna
AI Delhi Correspondent
