‘Tarnished reputation of Rajasthan govt’: BJP notice to its minister Kirodi Lal Meena after snooping claims
In the video that surfaced last week, Meena is purportedly heard saying: "I was hoping that things would change and that when we come to power, we will crack down on the corrupt"
The state government has denied Meena’s allegations (X/@DrKirodilalBJP) Days after he accused his own government of snooping on him, Rajasthan Cabinet Minister Kirodi Lal Meena has been issued a show cause notice from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) asking him to explain his remarks.
The development comes after video – undated but said to be recent — purportedly showed Meena accusing his own government of tapping his phone after he sought cancellation of the 2021 Sub Inspector recruitment exams over paper leak allegations. The exam was conducted under the previous Ashok Gehlot government.
In the notice he was served Monday, the BJP claimed that the accusations that Meena, Rajasthan’s agriculture minister and an MLA from Sawai Madhopur, made “tarnished the reputation of the BJP and the BJP-led government in Rajasthan”. It also gave the leader three days to respond.
“You are a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and have been elected MLA from Sawai Madhopur constituency for the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly on a Bharatiya Janata Party ticket. Recently you made a public statement in newspapers in which you accused the BJP-led government of getting your telephone tapped, which is untrue,” the notice from the state BJP president Madan Rathore said. “Your above statement has been considered by the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party as indiscipline according to the party’s Constitution. This ‘show cause notice’ is being sent to you on the direction of the national president of the BJP.”
In the video that surfaced last week, Meena, who was addressing a public gathering at Amagarh temple in Jaipur, is purportedly heard saying: “I was hoping that things would change and that when we come to power, we will crack down on the corrupt. The protests I did in the previous government and because of which you supported us and we formed the government – work was not done on those issues.”
He said he raised some issues of corruption, including of the 2021 Sub Inspector paper leak, with the present government.
“Maine jab kaha ke woh pareeksha radd karo, toh sarkar ne meri baat nahi maani. Ulta sarkar ki taraf se – jaisa pichle raj main hua karta tha – chappe chappe par mere liye CID lagai jaati hai aur mera telephone bhi record kiya jaata hai. Lekin main koi bura kaam karta nahi, isliye main darta nahi, isliye main jhukta nahi, isliye main tuut ta bhi nahi. Main sach kehne se nahi chookta. (When I said cancel that examination, the government didn’t listen to me. On the contrary, the government – as it used to be during the previous rule – deputed CID (personnel) for me at every nook and corner and my telephone is also recorded. But I don’t do anything wrong, that’s why I’m not afraid, that’s why I don’t bend, that’s why I don’t break. And I never shy away from telling the truth).”
The statement kicked up a storm during the Budget session of the assembly, with the Opposition Congress — led by Gehlot and Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra — demanding Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma’s resignation.
The state government has denied Meena’s allegations.
When contacted, Kirodi said he had “no information” about the notice.
“I’m a dedicated and disciplined worker of the party. Whenever I get the notice, I will respond to the party leaders,” he told The Indian Express.
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