E-Paper
Sleazy video circulation case: Court sets aside Bhupesh Baghel’s discharge
The case relates to the alleged circulation of a sleazy video purportedly involving former Chhattisgarh minister Rajesh Munat in 2017
A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court on Saturday set aside a magistrate’s order discharging former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel in a case related to the alleged circulation of a sleazy video purportedly involving former state minister Rajesh Munat in 2017.
Baghel will have to face trial in the case unless he secures relief from a higher court. The CBI had named Baghel as one of the accused in its charge sheet in the case.
Counsel for Baghel, Faizal Rizvi, said the sessions court of the CBI has set aside the lower court’s judgment on Saturday and that a trial will now be conducted against Baghel under Sections 469 and 471 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 67(2) of the Information Technology Act.
In the same proceedings, the special court dismissed appeals of other accused, Kailash Murarka, journalist Vinod Verma, and Vijay Bhatia, challenging the trial court’s decision to frame charges against them.
The case stems from two cases that the Chhattisgarh Police registered in 2017 based on complaints of Munat and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Prakash Bajaj. The cases were later transferred to the CBI.
In his complaint, Bajaj said he received a phone call from an unidentified person claiming to possess a pornographic video of his “aaka (master)”. He added that the person demanded ransom and threatened to make the video public if the demand was not met. The first case was filed on Bajaj’s complaint.
The second case was registered, naming Baghel, then the Chhattisgarh Congress chief, and Vinod Verma, over the circulation of an allegedly fake pornographic video of Munat on social media platforms to malign his image and gain political advantage. Baghel and Verma denied the allegations.
Verma was arrested in October 2017 on blackmail and extortion charges. He claimed he was being framed, alleging that the state government was targeting him over a purported “sex CD” of Munat. Munat has maintained that the video was fake and part of a conspiracy to defame him.
