Rajasthan MLA arrested for allegedly accepting ₹20 lakh bribe from mine owner

The Rajasthan Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Sunday arrested a legislative assembly member from Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP), Jaikrishn Patel, for allegedly accepting ₹20 Lakh bribe from a mine owner at his official residence, officials said.

The Director General of the ACB, Ravi Prakash Meharda, said, “The MLA had been under our radar since April 4 following a complaint lodged by a mine owner, Ravindra Singh. On Sunday, ACB laid a trap and caught the MLA red-handed.” “It is the first time in Rajasthan that a sitting MLA has been caught red-handed while accepting a bribe,” he added.

According to officials, Patel demanded ₹10 crore from the complainant to drop three questions regarding mining in Todabhim constituency in Karauli district, which were listed in the last assembly session.

“The questions were regarding some mining leases. After submitting the questions, Patel approached Singh and asked him to pay ₹10 crore bribe to drop them. Later, the bribe was finalised for ₹2 crore after a negotiation, and this was decided to be paid in some instalments. Singh had earlier paid ₹1 lakh by visiting him in Banswara,” said Meharda.

It was the second instalment that the complainant went to pay on Sunday when the agency arrested Patel red-handed from his MLA quarter in Jaipur’s Jyoti Nagar.

“We planned a mission to trap him on Sunday. Prior permission was taken from both the Speaker Vasudev Devnani and chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma to conduct this mission and arrest the MLA,” said Meharda.

On Sunday morning, a team from the agency reached Patel’s residence along with the complainant. “One of his staff brought them inside and informed the MLA about their arrival. Patel was waiting in another room. Later, the staff received the money from the complainant. He also took it to the MLA’s room to show him. However, he immediately fled with the money when he saw us moving towards the MLA’s room,” the officer said.

The DG said that the cash could not be recovered while a manhunt is underway to nab that staff. “We have sufficient evidence against the MLA receiving the money. There is an audio-visual record of the entire incident while we have also conducted a colour-test and traced the colour of the cash on his fingers.”

Later, the MLA was brought to the ACB headquarters in Jhalana Doongri for further investigation. “We are also checking the CCTV footage of the nearby areas of his MLA residence. It is not yet clear what the MLA’s interest was in Singh’s mines in Todabhim which doesn’t even come under his constituency in the Southern Rajasthan area. We are questioning him about it.”

Patel contested from Banswara’s Bagidora constituency in a by-poll in November as a BAP candidate after former Congress minister Mahendrajeet Singh Malviya switched to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and stepped down from the MLA’s post ahead of the general election in 2024. The Congress exetnded support to Patel and he defeated the BJP candidate Subhash Tamboliya. Patel had finished

second position in the 2023 assembly election from the same seat when Malviya bagged it.

The BAP on Sunday termed Patel’s arrest a “conspiracy.”

BAP member of Parliament (MP) from Banswara-Dungarpur, Rajkumar Roat, said, “We had this fear for a long time. Our MLA is a victim of a bigger ploy. It is not yet clear to us which party has been part of this conspiracy and why did they give the money. It is a norm in Rajasthan that such conspiracy is hatched against any third party that might be emerging as a big player.”

The BAP emerged as a force in the tribal regions of Rajasthan, marking a shift in the state’s political landscape.

The party races its roots back to the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) floated by Chhotubhai Vasava in Gujarat in 2017. BTP MLAs Roat and Ramprasad Dindor broke ties with BTP and floated BAP in September 2023.

Founded to champion the rights and issues of the tribal communities, BAP made a notable debut in the 2023 Rajasthan assembly elections, securing three seats- Chorasi, Dhariawad, and Aspur.

Later, in 2024 by-poll, the party bagged the Bagidora seat. BAP now has one member of Parliament and four legislative assembly members.

Reacting to Patel’s arrest, Rajasthan home minister Jawahar Singh Bedham said, “Our government is following a zero-tolerance policy to corruption. An MLA’s duty is to think about the development of the people and his region. But such activities by an MLA tarnished the image of the state. There is nothing called a ‘small’ or ‘third’ party when it comes to such corruption cases. It is sheer violation of an MLA’s duty towards the public and necessary action will be taken against such representative.”