BJP leader Kirodi Lal Meena has accused the Rajasthan government, in which he is a Cabinet minister, of snooping on him and tapping his phones.
In an undated video from Amagarh temple in Jaipur, the minister is heard saying, “I was hoping that things would change and that when we come to power, we will crack down on the corrupt. The issues on which I protested against the previous (Congress) government, and because of which you supported us and we formed the government, work was not done on those issues (under the current BJP government).”
He said he flagged to the current government issues related to corruption, including the 2021 sub-inspector exam paper leak.
“Maine jab kaha ke woh pareeksha radd karo, toh sarkar ne meri baat nahi maani. Ulta sarkar ki taraf se – jaisa pichle raj main hua karta tha – chappe chappe par mere liye CID lagai jaati hai aur mera telephone bhi record kiya jaata hai. Lekin main koi bura kaam karta nahi, isliye main darta nahi, isliye main jhukta nahi, isliye main tuut ta bhi nahi. Main sach kehne se nahi chookta. (When I called for the examination to be cancelled, the government didn’t listen to me. On the contrary, the government, similar to how it was under the previous rule, deputed CID (personnel) for me at every nook and corner and has also been recording my telephone. But I didn’t do anything wrong. That’s why I’m not afraid. That’s why I don’t bend. That’s why I don’t break. And I never shy away from telling the truth),” he said.
Meena did not respond to calls and messages by The Indian Express.
The previous Ashok Gehlot government had been rocked by phone tapping allegations with Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat lodging an FIR against Gehlot’s then Officer on Special Duty Lokesh Sharma and others for allegedly tapping his phone.
Meena has been in a constant tussle with the state government and the party, with the friction first surfacing around the formation of the BJP government in December 2023.
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His supporters say that he should have been made the Chief Minister or deputy CM and that the departments assigned to him didn’t meet his stature. Moreover, sources say that coupled with lack of progress over the corruption cases he has raised, Meena has felt stifled under the present dispensation, which has led to his frequent outbursts against the government.
Meena is also absent from the ongoing Budget Session of the state Assembly after seeking exemption on the grounds of his health. Like last year, his request to Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani, seeking permission to remain absent during the current budget session, was approved with a voice vote.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
