India
-Krishna Kripa
The
Anti-Corruption
Bureau
(ACB)
in
Rajasthan
arrested
Bharat
Adivasi
Party
MLA
Jaikrishn
Patel
on
Sunday.
He
allegedly
accepted
a
bribe
of
Rs
20
lakh
to
withdraw
three
questions
from
the
state
Assembly,
according
to
a
senior
ACB
official.
This
marks
the
first
instance
of
an
MLA
being
apprehended
in
a
corruption
case
by
the
Rajasthan
ACB,
stated
Director
General
Ravi
Prakash
Meharda.
image
Patel,
aged
38,
represents
the
Bagidora
assembly
constituency
in
Banswara
district.
He
was
elected
as
an
MLA
during
the
bypolls
held
alongside
last
year’s
Lok
Sabha
elections.
The
MLA
allegedly
demanded
a
bribe
of
Rs
10
crore
to
drop
questions
concerning
mines,
but
the
deal
was
settled
at
Rs
2.5
crore.
During
verification,
the
complainant
handed
over
Rs
1
lakh
to
Patel
in
Banswara.
Bribery
Allegations
and
Evidence
On
Sunday,
Patel
was
caught
at
the
MLA
quarters
while
accepting
Rs
20
lakh.
Meharda
mentioned
that
Patel
gave
the
cash-filled
bag
to
another
individual
who
managed
to
flee
with
it.
The
ACB
is
currently
questioning
Patel
about
this
person.
The
DG
asserted
that
audio
and
video
evidence
exists
to
support
claims
of
Patel’s
bribery
demands
and
acceptance.
Bharat
Adivasi
Party
(BAP)
convener
and
Banswara
MP
Rajkumar
Roat
commented
on
the
situation.
“The
party
will
take
action
against
the
MLA
if
his
involvement
is
found,” he
said.
Roat
also
suggested
that
it
might
be
a
conspiracy
by
the
BJP
government
but
assured
that
appropriate
measures
would
be
taken
if
Patel’s
involvement
is
confirmed.
Political
Reactions
and
Investigations
The
Assembly
Speaker
was
informed
about
the
case,
and
upon
receiving
permission,
the
trap
was
set
leading
to
Patel’s
arrest.
The
MLA
had
submitted
questions
related
to
mines
owned
by
the
complainant,
which
are
outside
his
constituency.
Initially,
Patel
insisted
on
receiving
Rs
20
lakh
in
Banswara,
but
the
complainant
persuaded
him
to
collect
it
in
Jaipur.
On
the
day
of
the
incident,
Patel
called
the
complainant
to
meet
at
the
MLA
quarters
in
Jaipur’s
Jyoti
Nagar.
Once
there,
the
complainant
handed
over
a
bag
containing
cash
to
Patel,
who
then
passed
it
to
an
accomplice
present
with
him.
After
receiving
a
signal
from
the
complainant
that
the
transaction
occurred,
ACB
officials
apprehended
Patel.
Political
Implications
and
Statements
Former
deputy
chief
minister
and
Congress
leader
Sachin
Pilot
expressed
his
views
on
this
incident.
“No
one
is
above
the
law,”
he
remarked,
emphasizing
clean
politics’ importance
and
calling
for
a
thorough
investigation.
Pilot
also
accused
central
agencies
of
being
misused
as
political
tools
by
the
government.
Pilot
highlighted
that
agencies
like
ED,
income
tax,
and
CBI
have
been
given
excessive
freedom.
He
cited
a
Supreme
Court
observation
stating
that
ED
cases
have
a
conviction
rate
of
just
1
per
cent.
Additionally,
he
accused
BJP
leaders
of
using
these
agencies
to
tarnish
political
opponents’
reputations
nationwide.
The
Bagidora
assembly
seat
became
vacant
after
Congress
MLA
Mahendrajeet
Singh
Malviya
joined
BJP
before
the
2024
Lok
Sabha
elections.
This
development
adds
another
layer
of
complexity
to
Rajasthan’s
political
landscape
amid
ongoing
investigations
into
corruption
allegations
against
Jaikrishn
Patel.
With
inputs
from
PTI
