BJP leader files FIR against Surjewala for allegations against Shekhawat

Jaipur: Laxmikant Bhardwaj, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Rajasthan, has filed a police complaint against Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala and new state Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra for naming Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in an alleged bid to topple the Ashok Gehlot-led government.

On Friday, Surjewala at a press conference had alleged that three audiotapes, which had surfaced the previous evening and quickly went viral on social media, had unmasked the BJP’s bid to unseat the democratically elected government.

He said in the audiotapes revealed that the rebel Congress member of legislative assembly (MLA) Bhanwarlal Sharma, who has since been suspended, BJP leader Sanjay Jain and Union minister Shekhawat were making deals to topple the Gehlot government.

HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the three audiotapes.

The special operations group (SOG) of Rajasthan Police filed two first information reports (FIRs) against Shekhawat and the other two leaders, who have been accused by the Congress and on the basis of a complaint filed by the chip whip of Rajasthan assembly Mahesh Joshi, shortly after Surjewala’s allegations.

The BJP has consistently denied any role in the horse-trading or a bid to overthrow the Gehlot government and has maintained that it’s the Congress’s internal power struggle for which the opposition party has needlessly been dragged into.

Shekhawat, too, has denied that it was his voice caught on the audiotape and offered to co-operate for any probe.

On Friday night, Bhardwaj, along with BJP leaders Surendra Singh Naruka and Ashok Shekhawat, filed a complaint in the Ashok Nagar police station in Jaipur against Surjewala, Dotasra, and Joshi, alleging that they were making provocative and insulting statements against BJP leaders on the basis of which the SOG had filed fake cases under section 124A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Shreemohan Meena, station house officer (SHO), Ashok Nagar police station, said that the complaint was received on Friday night and it is being looked into.

Bhardwaj has demanded that the Congress leaders’ arrest under Sections 469 (forgery for the purpose of harming reputation), 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record), 195 (giving or fabricating false evidence), 500 (punishment for defamation), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 505 (statements conducting to public mischief), 120B (punishment of criminal conspiracy) and 166A (public servant disobeying law) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

In the complaint, Bhardwaj said Surjewala, Dotasra, and Joshi have been making baseless and provocative statements to tarnish the BJP’s reputation.

He alleged that the Congress is deliberately blaming the BJP to divert the people’s attention from the party’s ongoing internal power struggle.

He further alleged that a conspiracy was hatched by Lokesh Sharma, officer on special duty (OSD) to Gehlot with the intent to tarnish BJP’s reputation and fake audiotapes were made, depicting that his party leaders were enticing rebel Congress lawmakers with crores of rupees to switch sides.

Bhardwaj said MLA Sharma had shared the three audiotapes with media persons through WhatsApp at around 8:25 pm on Thursday.

A report in a local daily had also reported that the audiotapes were released by Sharma, said Bhardwaj.

Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma said: “The BJP was conspiring to overthrow the Gehlot government. Now, it has resorted to making all kinds of allegations against us because it has been exposed.”

The Gehlot government has plunged into a political turmoil following a revolt by Sachin Pilot, who has since been sacked from the dual posts of deputy chief minister, Rajasthan, and state Congress president.

Pilot and 19 rebel Congress lawmakers, who owe allegiance to him, have been camping at ITC Grand Bharat Hotel in Manesar, Haryana that has emerged as a playground for political parleys.