JAIPUR: Rajasthan Minister Babulal Nagar, accused of raping a 35-year-old woman at his residence here, tendered his resignation.
The 53-year-old Minister of State for Dairy and Khadi sent his resignation to the Chief Minister’s Office.
“I have resigned on moral grounds so that an impartial probe can be carried out as I am not guilty in the alleged case”, Nagar told reporters at his residence.
“I sent my hand written resignation to the CMO through a person this morning. After many thoughts and second thoughts, I decided to resign…no one asked me to do this”, he said.
When contacted, Press Advisor in CMO Mohd Yasin told PTI that the Chief Minister was in Barmer for a function and he had no information of Nagar’s resignation.
The Sodala Police station had booked Nagar for allegedly raping, threatening and beating up the woman on September 11, after calling her to his official bungalow in Civil Lines on the pretext of giving her a job.
After registering the case under various sections of the IPC, police referred the case to CB-CID as it involved an MLA of the present Assembly.
The state’s CID-Crime Branch had yesterday begun probing the charges of rape and assault leveled against Nagar.
The woman’s statement was recorded and her clothes, which she wore on the day of the alleged crime, were recovered and sent for forensic examination.
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot had yesterday said that no one is above law and that law will take its own course.
“I said earlier also during the Asaram case that no one is above law,” he had said.
Media frequently alleges that the government interferes in CBI investigation and that it influenced the recent Asaram case, but the state government never gets involved in any case, Gehlot said. Sleuths of state CID-Crime Branch led by Additional SP V K Gaur had last night inspected the room in Nagar’s official bungalow where the alleged incident of rape and assault took place, police sources said.
The victim was also taken to the official bungalow by the sleuths for investigation purposes, the sources said.
Asked about the visit of the policemen, Nagar said, “No one asked me any question. Some people came in plainclothes to my residence late last night. I was not interrogated on any matter by them. I did not see any lady with them”.
Asked if the minister was interrogated, Gaur said, “Only higher authorities could divulge information in the case”.
Taking strong objection to CID-CB’s move of taking the victim to the minister’s residence for crime-spot verification last night, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) convener Kavita Srivastava said it was a violation of Supreme Court directions.
“What was the urgency to take the victim at night without any of her relatives accompanying her…why could she not be taken in the day…she could have been taken this morning…this is violation of human rights”, she said.
“The minister was present in the bungalow…he might have tried to influence the probe at any level…this is not acceptable”, she said. -PTI
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