Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on August 18 urged M. Venkaiah Naidu to reject the idea of a “₹192 crore enclave” for the Vice-President, saying “let vanity perish and sanity prevail”.
Mr. Chidambaram’s remarks in a tweet came after a media report claimed that the government has set in motion its plan to construct a new residence for the Vice-President by inviting pre-qualification bids for the proposed Vice-President’s enclave next to the North Block and the Rashtrapati Bhavan at an estimated cost of ₹192 crore.
“In an India where austerity should be the watchword in high places, a ₹192 cr. enclave for the Vice-President will be an abomination,” Mr. Chidambaram tweeted.
“Shri Venkaiah Naidu should reject the idea as long as he is Vice-President. This is another vanity project. Let vanity perish and sanity prevail,” the former Union Minister said.
The Congress has been asking the BJP-led Union government to shelve its plans on the Central Vista redevelopment project, alleging that it is a “vanity project” and “wastage” of public funds.