The Supreme Court on Friday ordered the filing of a First Information Report against Uttar Pradesh Samajwadi Party Minister Gayatri Prajapati in connection with a gangrape and sexual harassment case. The apex court has given the state police eight weeks to file a report on the case.
“This case is a Bharatiya Janata Party conspiracy against me. The truth will be out soon,” Prajapati said while stressing that he respected the Supreme Court’s order.
In 2016, the minister was accused of raping a 35-year-old woman and sexually assaulting her daughter over the previous two years, IndiaTV reported.
Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah said the apex court ordered the FIR against Prajapati because the state police were refusing to file a report against the Samajwadi Party leader.
In January 2017, the election commission had censured Prajapati for breaching the model code of conduct, which bans “corrupt practices and bribing voters”. In an FIR, the Fatehpur police had said they had seized 4,452 sarees, allegedly meant to be distributed to voters, from a vehicle that was believed to be on its way to the minister’s residence.
Phases one and two of the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh were held on February 11 and 15. The other five phases are scheduled for February 19, February 23, February 27, March 4 and March 8.
In September 2016, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had sacked Prajapati for promoting illegal mining in the state.
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