Rajasthan: BJP MP continues sit-in, police says he should approach ACB

BJP Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Meena continued his dharna in front of a police station here for the second day on Wednesday to press for the registration of two FIRs over alleged irregularities in a Rajasthan government department even as police said he should approach the Anti-Corruption Bureau with his complaints.

The MP had on Monday alleged irregularities in the grant of tenders related to the Jal Jeevan Mission projects carried out by the Public Health and Engineering Department (PHED).

Meena said that if the allegations levelled by him are not proven, then a case should be registered against him also.

On Tuesday, he along with a complainant reached the Ashok Nagar police station and sat on dharna alleging that the FIRs were not being registered by the police.

Meena, who continued his sit-in on Wednesday, also performed yoga in the morning on International Yoga Day.

Later, BJP state president CP Joshi reached the dharna site and raised the demand for FIR registration.

“The government says that each FIR is registered in the police stations but the police have refused to register the case. I demand from the police officers to register the case,” Joshi told reporters.

When contacted, Jaipur Police Commissioner Anand Srivastava said that the matter was related to Anti-Corruption Bureau and, therefore, Meena should go to the ACB office to register the case.

“The MP should go to the ACB office to register the case. It has nothing to do with the local thana,” he said.

In one of the complaints, it is alleged that tenders of Rs 900 crore were issued to two firms on the basis of fake experience certificates in 48 projects of Jal Jeevan Mission.

The complainant T N Sharma has named two senior officials in one complaint, while in the second, he named Rajasthan PHED Minister Mahesh Joshi along with others.

Mahesh Joshi has rejected allegations against him saying a minister does not have a role in the tendering process.

“The allegations against me are totally baseless. It has become the habit of Kirodi Meena to make allegations. If he has evidence, he should give it to the chief minister or to anyone he wants,” Joshi has said.

“The minister has no role in the tendering process so therefore the allegations of Meena against me are baseless,” he said.

Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore had also reached the police station on Tuesday and demanded that the FIRs be registered on the complaints.