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Cong seeks DNA test of Uttarkhand BJP MLA accused of rape and fathering a child
The BJP leadership in Uttarakhand said the party would wait for the investigation to finish before any action.
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Accused of rape and fathering a child, Mahesh Singh Negi, a BJP MLA in Uttarakhand has charged the opposition Congress with maligning his image by “using the woman” while the Congress has demanded that he should prove his innocence by undergoing a DNA test.
Negi represents the Dwarahat constituency of Almora district.
On Sunday, the woman who is married lodged a complaint with the Dehradun police accusing Negi of raping her several times and fathering her child. She also sought police protection for herself and her family members from Negi.
She was earlier booked for extortion and blackmail after Negi’s wife Rita Negi lodged a complaint accusing her of trying to extort ₹5 crore from him by threatening to frame him in a false case.
Negi who refuted all the allegations of the woman, alleged on Monday that Congress is conspiring to malign his image and harm him politically.
id, “All the allegations levelled against me by the woman are false. She has been already booked by police for trying to extort a huge sum of money from me. To save herself from that, she has now lodged a concocted complaint against me.”
“It’s all a conspiracy by the Congress to malign my image and harm my political career. They are using the woman against me for that which is shameful. A thorough investigation in the extortion case will reveal everything,” the MLA said.
He, however, did not answer when asked if he would undergo a DNA test to debunk the woman’s claim of paternity and disconnected the phone citing his wife’s ill health.
The Congress insists it has nothing to do with the incident and said the woman has herself come forward and levelled the accusations against Negi and the onus is on him to clear the air.
“Congress has no connection with the matter whatsoever. The woman has accused a ruling party’s lawmaker which is a very serious issue. There should be a thorough probe on her complaint and MLA Negi should undergo a DNA test to prove that the child is not his,” said party state vice-president Suryakant Dhasmana.
Meanwhile, the BJP state leadership in a calibrated response said the party would “wait for the investigation to finish on both the complaints before any action”.
Devendra Bhasin, vice-president of the state unit of the BJP said, “Both the sides have levelled allegations against each other and lodged their complaints on the same. We will wait for the investigative agencies to finish their probe on the two before taking any action at party level against Negi. As of now we haven’t taken any action because it’s his personal matter,” said Bhasin.
“Having said that, the BJP will always keep its principles intact. If Negi is found guilty, party will take appropriate action.”
The case has a similarity with that involving Uttarakhand’s former chief minister ND Tiwari in which a man named Rohit Shekhar had claimed to be his son. After initial denials, Tiwari accepted him as his son in 2013 after a DNA match.
In another case involving a politician, the then Congress l Cabinet minister and now BJP leader and Cabinet minister, Harak Singh Rawat was booked in a molestation case on the complaint of a woman in Delhi. However, the woman later withdrew her complaint.
MM Semwal, political expert and professor of political science at Garhwal Central University, Srinagar, Pauri Garhwal, said, “The recent incident involving the BJP MLA is not a good thing for Uttarakhand politics. It will only symbolise the degradation of ethics in the state’s politics.”
“People nowadays are already terming politics as a very dirty affair and on top of that incidents like these will only bring more disrepute. A thorough investigation should be carried out and stern action should be taken against anyone found guilty to avoid its repetition,” he said.
