Raj anti-graft agency exonerates 2 of bribing MLAs to topple Gehlot govt in 2020

Sachin Pilot led a revolt of 18 Congress lawmakers against the then chief minister Ashok Gehlot in July 2020 and triggered a month-long crisis

Rajasthan’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has exonerated two businessmen accused of bribing lawmakers to topple the then Congress government in 2020, saying they discussed the COVID-19 pandemic, China-Pakistan geopolitics, and the tussle between chief minister Ashok Gehlot and his deputy Sachin Pilot, unlike what was alleged based on call recordings.

The ACB said the two had only discussed tussle between the then chief minister Ashok Gehlot and his deputy Sachin Pilot. (X)

The matter came to light when a single-judge Rajasthan high court bench quashed the case against Ashok Singh and Bharat Malani on Monday, based on the ACB’s report dated August 26. The report, submitted to Justice Ashutosh Kumar, said Singh and Malani were booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act on August 9, 2020, based on three call recordings with Anil Mishra and Karan Singh.

The ACB said the tussle between Gehlot and Pilot was among the things the four discussed. “But there was no discussion on bribing the MLAs [members of the legislative assembly] to topple the democratically-elected government,” said ACB in its report, a copy of which HT has seen.

Pilot led a revolt of 18 Congress lawmakers against Gehlot in July 2020 and triggered a month-long crisis. The matter was resolved when the Congress leadership removed Pilot as the deputy chief minister and state party chief. Three years later, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) returned to power in the state.

The ACB said Ashok Singh and Malani’s bank accounts did not point to any suspicious transactions. The ACB said it found no evidence to support the allegation that lawmaker Rameela Khadiya was offered a bribe. “Had Khadiya been offered a bribe, she would have complained to the ACB.”

Ashok Singh and Malani, who moved the high court challenging the First Information Report (FIR) against them, were arrested in 2020 for allegedly attempting to bribe three independent and one Congress lawmaker ahead of the Rajya Sabha election to destabilise the Gehlot government.

The Congress lodged a case days after Gehlot accused the BJP leaders of conspiring to topple his government using money power. He claimed lawmakers were offered ₹10 crore in advance and ₹15 crore after the government was toppled. The FIR alleged that the two accused offered at least ₹30 to 40 crores to topple the government.

Ashok Singh and Malani were granted bail in August 2020 after the removal of the sedition charges from the FIR.