 "Rajasthan elections: BJP suspends Kailash Meghwal over corruption claims")
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has suspended senior MLA and former Rajasthan Assembly Speaker Kailash Meghwal, from the party's primary membership due to the corruption allegations he made against Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, according to a report by the Hindu. BJP State President C P Joshi had recently issued a show cause notice to Meghwal in connection with this matter on August 29.
The BJP's disciplinary committee chairperson, Onkar Singh Lakhawat, confirmed that Joshi had instructed that Meghwal's response and the entire matter be referred to the committee for further action.
Kailash Meghwal, who is 89 years old, had publicly referred to the Union Minister as "corrupt number one" during a public rally last month. He further alleged that Arjun Ram Meghwal had accepted bribes worth crores of rupees as an officer in Churu district before entering politics.
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This clash between the two leaders has arisen just ahead of the State Assembly election in Rajasthan slated for December this year or early 2023.
The six-time MLA, representing Bhilwara district's reserved constituency of Shahpura, remained defiant and called for Arjun Ram Meghwal's removal from his Cabinet position until the charges against him, including reportedly pending court cases, are resolved. He claimed that a case registered by the state's Anti-Corruption Bureau was still pending.
Kailash Meghwal also announced that he had written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing his views and would seek the election commission's intervention to revoke Arjun Ram Meghwal's Parliament membership. He further declared his intention to contest the upcoming assembly election and claimed he would defeat the BJP candidate by a substantial margin.
Kailash Meghwal asserted that there is factionalism within the BJP's State unit "from top to bottom" and that leaders close to former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje are being singled out. He stated that he had been marginalised within the party and prevented from participating in its ongoing Parivartan Yatras.
The former Assembly Speaker is widely regarded as a prominent leader from Raje's camp.
In response, the union minister refuted Kailash Meghwal's allegations and claimed the latter had surmised that "he was not getting one (assembly ticket) this time" and was probably preparing to join Congress.
According to agency reports, Kailash Meghwal stated "This is not an election stunt,". Adding that he did not believe a corrupt person should be heading the post of law minister so Kailash Meghwal began "collecting material against him."
"I will remain active in politics and will not leave it", Kailash Meghwal said when asked about being "sidelined" in the party.
(With agency inputs)