The curious case of Arunachal CM, Pema Khandu

Arunachal Pradesh Government got away lightly in the Supreme Court this week in a case involving chief minister Pema Khandu and his family members.

The family has been fighting corruption charges since 2010 and a former chief minister Kaliko Pul in a suicide note left behind had levelled serious allegations of corruption against the chief minister and his family. Pul died by suicide barely a month after Khandu became the chief minister in July, 2016.

Pul’s handwritten suicide note released by his widow levelled serious allegations but they were never investigated. A PIL filed in 2024 revived the allegations and alleged that Pema Khandu was running the state like a private limited company.

His family members were being awarded lucrative public works and contracts, the PIL claimed and sought an investigation by the CBI. While the Supreme Court had directed both the union government and the Arunachal Pradesh government to respond with their counter affidavits, the central government’s affidavit did not come up before the Supreme Court when it heard the matter this week.

Arunachal Pradesh Government filed an affidavit giving details of contracts awarded to firms owned by the chief minister’s wife, nephew and other family members between 2015 and 2025 as sought by the court.

The catch was that the contracts mentioned in the affidavit pertained to only one district Tawang. Arunachal Pradesh has a staggering 38 districts but the state government’s counsel argued that since Pema Khandu belonged to Tawang, contracts awarded in the district were the most relevant. The court directed a comprehensive counter-affidavit to be filed by the state and fixed the next date of hearing on the 3 February, 2026.

The details disclosed about Tawang alone were staggering enough though. Four firms, two owned by Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu’s wife Tsering Dolma, and one each by his brother Tashi Khandu and sister-in-law Nima Drema, were awarded 146 work contracts worth Rs 383.74 crore by the state government in Tawang district alone between 2012 and 2023, the affidavit to the Supreme Court disclosed.

The Supreme Court also noted that 95 per cent of contracts in Tawang went to firms or individuals related to Khandu or his brother.

Out of this lot, as many as 59 contracts worth Rs 16.83 crore were awarded directly through work orders without a tender being floated. At least 11 of these work orders exceeded the Rs 50 lakh limit set in 2020 for contracts issued without tenders, which was meant to promote local professionals and entrepreneurs in the state.

Arguing on behalf of one of the petitioners, senior advocate Prashant Bhushan alleged that a total of 31 contracts for works worth Rs.188 crores were awarded in Tawang alone in the last 10 years, besides works of Rs.2.61 crores through work orders. As per the state policy, for works below Rs.50 lakhs, contract could be awarded without tender.

"They say we want to give the contracts to companies which are trusted by local people…and the companies trusted by the local people are companies of the CM, his wife, etc. because he comes from that area...in almost all cases, two companies responded to the tender with the CM's company bidding 0.01 per cent less and therefore they are awarded...", Prashant Bhushan alleged.

He also referred to a CAG report related to Pema Khandu's father. The report pertained to the state paying hefty amounts for transportation of rice by headoaders despite having a far cheaper option of transportation by trucks.

To recap, the petitioners approached the Court in 2024 alleging partiality in giving away of key tenders to close associates of Khandu, including the construction company 'M/s Brand Eagles' (belonging to his spouse). It was further claimed that Pema's nephew-Tsering Tashi, an MLA from Tawang District owning M/s Alliance Trading Co., was awarded work contracts without following due procedure.

The petition prayed for an investigation into the matter either by the Central Bureau of Investigation or a Special Investigation Team. Khandu himself has denied all charges. Ironically, he has positioned himself as a crusader against corruption in the state.