After PM CARES Fund, CJP flags ₹92 crore upkeep bill for ministers’ homes: ‘Stop fixing lavish homes’

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has questioned government spending on the upkeep of Union ministers’ residences in Lutyens’ Delhi, saying the money could instead be used to improve government schools.

The remarks came after a PTI report claimed that the annual upkeep bill for Union ministers’ residences had risen from ₹27 crore in 2014-15 to a record ₹92 crore in 2025-26.

Reacting to the figures, the CJP wrote on X, “Stop fixing your lavish homes, and fix the schools! ₹92 crore = 10 new world class government schools. The money is available, the intent to use it for government schools is missing.”

According to the data cited in the post, which was claimed to have been obtained through an RTI, spending on the upkeep of the residences stood at ₹133.9 crore between 2014 and 2019, ₹250 crore between 2019 and 2024, and ₹174.5 crore between 2024 and 2026. The total expenditure over the 12-year period was put at ₹547.68 crore.

CJP’s ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign

This comes amid the CJP’s campaign for better infrastructure in rural government schools. The party launched its ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign on August 15, calling for social audits of schools and improvements in basic facilities such as electricity, drinking water, toilets and mid-day meals.

The campaign also raised the issue of transportation for students in rural areas. The CJP has said that schools should not have to struggle for basic facilities when significant public funds were available elsewhere.

“Lack of funds was never the problem. Lack of intent is,” the party said in a post on X.

CJP raises PM CARES Fund question

Earlier, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke questioned why the PM CARES Fund could not be used to improve basic facilities in rural government schools. The fund’s corpus rose 17.8% from ₹7,173.03 crore in 2023-24 to ₹8,452.07 crore in 2024-25, according to its latest audited statements.

ALSO READ | ‘Use PM Cares Fund for schools’: CJP's Abhijeet Dipke as report reveals corpus rose to over ₹8,400 crore

Dipke said he had visited government schools in villages in recent days and found several lacking basic facilities, including drinking water.

“They are struggling to get drinking water in schools. So why are we not using this money for those children's schools? Why is this money not being used to build new schools?” he said. He also pointed to a mismatch between the shortage of funds reported by schools and the size of the PM CARES corpus. “So on one hand, it is being said that there are no funds for schools, and on the other hand, ₹8,500 crore is lying in the PM CARES Fund,” he said.

Dipke estimated that a well-equipped model school could cost around ₹8 crore. At that rate, he said, the PM CARES corpus could theoretically fund more than 1,000 such schools.

“If one school costs ₹8 crore, then with ₹8,500 crore, more than 1,000 new high-tech model schools could have been built. But none of this is happening,” he said.

The PM CARES Fund was set up on March 27, 2020, to respond to emergencies, including the Covid-19 pandemic. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is its chairperson, while the defence, home and finance ministers are trustees.

BJP hits back

The BJP rejected the criticism and accused the CJP of spreading misinformation about the PM CARES Fund.

The BJP’s Goa unit said the fund was meant for emergency and disaster relief and took a swipe at Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal, alleging that the CJP was a “pet project” of the AAP.

ALSO READ | BJP hits back after Dipke's PM Cares fund appeal for schools: ‘Kejriwal didn’t teach him basic facts'

“PM CARES funds are meant for emergency and disaster relief. Mr. @ArvindKejriwal, you taught your men good theatrics, but not basic facts. That’s not surprising,” the BJP said on X.

The party also challenged Dipke to visit Punjab and assess schools there, questioning the AAP government’s claims about “world-class schools”.

CJP alleges attack in Jaipur

CJP co-convenor Ashutosh Ranka and several party workers were allegedly attacked during a visit to a government school in Jaipur’s Rampura-Kanwarpura village on Friday. The CJP team had gone to inspect the condition of the school as part of its ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign.

ALSO READ | Ashutosh Ranka, CJP team stopped from entering Rajasthan village, allege assault

Ranka alleged that a group of people stopped the team from entering the village and assaulted him and other volunteers. He also claimed that one volunteer's arm was broken. Videos from the spot showed a confrontation between the CJP team and a group of people, along with damaged car windows.

Ranka alleged that BJP workers were behind the attack, but the claim has not been independently verified. The BJP has rejected the allegation.