Rajasthan Home Minister closes case against himself citing ‘interest of the state’

Then again, the other main beneficiaries are mainly Kataria’s Cabinet colleagues, state BJP leaders, and even government employees who supported the party during the elections.

Official documents show that most of these leaders were booked for creating unrest and rioting, while leading political agitations. Kataria, for instance, was accused of forcefully entering the Collector’s chamber in Rajsamand while leading an agitation in 2002.

Kataria told The Indian Express that his decision is justified as ‘‘most of these cases were political. They were registered to harass the Opposition during the Congress rule.’’

According to the documents, other prominent names whose case files will be shut include Food and Civil Supplies Minister Kirori Lal Meena, Health Minister Bhawani Joshi, State BJP chief Lalit Kishore Chaturvedi, MLAs Gyan Chand Parakh, Randhir Singh, Navneet Lal and Om Birla, former MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja and Rohitshva Kumar.

Several other BJP leaders are among the co-accused. As for government employees, 49 cases have been withdrawn against employee union leaders—some of them campaigned openly for the BJP during last year’s Lok Sabha polls— registered by the previous Congress government under Ashok Gehlot following a strike that failed in 2002.

Not surprisingly, Kataria’s directive has the Congress fuming. Party MLA, Sanyam Lodha, who is leading the Opposition tirade on the issue, said it’s a case of the government misusing powers. ‘‘Not a single common man will benefit from it,’’ said Lodha.

Lodha also accused the government move of communal-bias. ‘‘Police in Kalinjara town of Banswara had registered five cases following communal violence in 2002. While the government has withdrawn four cases in which the accused were from the majority community, the fifth has been left pending because of the involvement of the minority community,’’ Lodha alleged.

Ignoring the government recommendation for withdrawing a case against former MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja, a non-bailable warrant was issued against him. Ahuja is accused of slapping a policeman which, according to the reply filed by the government, was in ‘‘public interest’’. The police have still not arrested Ahuja and have declared him an absconder.