COURTESY HT JULY 13

Investigation finds accused tried to contact 6 southern Rajasthan MLAs
Jaykishan Sharma

jaykishan.sharma@htlive.com

Jaipur : The investigation of special operations group (SOG) into the sedition case registered on the basis of interception of two mobile phones has found that the two accused were eyeing six MLAs of southern Rajasthan and began efforts to contact them on June 10, said officials aware of the development.

The names of the MLAs have not been disclosed.

They also hinted that there could be more arrests in the case.

The SOG arrested Bharat Malani of Ajmer and Ashok Singh of Banswara on charges of hatching conspiracy to topple the Ashok Gehlot government.

Singh, a businessman, is a former member of Rajasthan BJP’s executive committee. Malani has been the state coordinator of one of BJPs state committees.

SOG additional director general of police Ashok Rathore said that recording of a conversation over the phone in which Malani and Singh are reportedly talking about offering money to legislators to destabilise the government is the basis of the FIR. “Both the accused are been questioned. They have been booked under section 124 A (sedition), 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code,” he said.

“During investigation, it was found that between June 10 and June 16, Singh contacted six MLAs from Banswara, Dungarpur and Chittorgarh,” the officials quoted above said.

The accused also tried to lure two MLAs of a newly formed party in Dungarpur