'Ashok Gehlot Tapped Phones During Political Crisis, Gave Me Audio To Circulate In Media': Former OSD Of Former Rajasthan CM

Lokesh Sharma has reiterated that former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot conducted phone tapping of several leaders during the 2020 political crisis, which was sparked by Sachin Pilot's rebellion.

Sharma is a former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) of Gehlot. He was interrogated by Delhi Police on Wednesday (25 September) in connection with the phone-tapping case on Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat's complaint.

Sharma has called for Gehlot to be questioned regarding the alleged phone interceptions. He also revealed that he submitted a seven-page written statement detailing the events of 16 July 2020.

According to him, on that day, Gehlot provided him with a pen drive containing call recordings, the origins of which he did not know, and instructed him to share the material with the media.

Sharma's interrogation took place at Delhi Police's Crime Branch office in Rohini, where he arrived around 11 am. The concerned audio clip contains discussions of 'toppling' the Gehlot government.

In his written statement, Sharma claimed that Gehlot called him at the CM's residence and gave him a pen drive, directing to circulate the content of the pen drive to media newspapers.

"I went home, transferred the files from the pen drive to my laptop and from laptop to my phone, then circulated them to media houses as directed," he was quoted as saying by PTI.

Sharma further suggested that the Crime Branch should now summon Gehlot for questioning, as he could provide additional details on how the phone interceptions were carried out and whether they were legal.

Sharma also claimed that the phones of several Congress MLAs from both the Gehlot and Sachin Pilot factions were tapped during the crisis under Gehlot's orders, with Sharma receiving transcripts of the calls.

He alleged that key officials, including the Chief Secretary, Director General of Police (DGP), Home Secretary, and Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, were aware of the phone-tapping activities.

The controversy surrounding phone tapping surfaced in July 2020 amidst a political standoff in Rajasthan, triggered by a rebellion led by then-Deputy CM Pilot and 18 other Congress leaders against Gehlot's leadership.

During this time, audio clips of alleged conversations between Shekhawat and Congress leaders came to light, with Gehlot accusing Shekhawat of conspiring to destabilise his government.

In March 2021, Delhi Police filed a First Information Report (FIR) against Sharma on charges of criminal conspiracy, breach of trust, and unlawful interception of telephonic conversations, based on Shekhawat's complaint.

Sharma's recent appearance marks the sixth time he has been questioned by the Crime Branch, with the previous session taking place on 10 October 2023.

Notably, Sharma was eyeing a Congress ticket in the 2023 Rajasthan assembly election but after his name came up in the case, he was denied a ticket and since then has been attacking Gehlot.

Responding to his allegations, former Rajasthan Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas called Sharma 'coward' and accused him of taking advantage when Gehlot was in power.