Rajasthan Congress Chief's Home Raided By ED In Paper Leak Case Ahead Of Polls

The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday raided the premises of Rajasthan PCC Chief and Mahua candidate in an exam paper leak case.

Rajasthan PCC Chief Govind Singh Dotasra.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) Conducts Raids at Premises of Rajasthan PCC Chief Govind Singh Dotasra and Mahua Candidate Omprakash Hudla in Connection with Exam Paper Leak Case, PTI quoted officials as saying. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is conducting searches at the residences of Dotasra, a former minister for school education, in Sikar and Jaipur, as well as at the home of Omprakash Hudla, the party candidate from the Mahua seat in Dausa, among others, PTI quoted sources.

Elections for the 200-member Rajasthan Assembly are scheduled for November 25.

Dotasra is the Congress party's candidate from the Lacchmangarh seat in Sikar, where he is up against BJP's Subhash Maharia. He currently serves as the sitting MLA from this constituency.

The ED had previously arrested former RPSC member Babulal Katara and another individual identified as Anil Kumar Meena in connection with this case. In June, the ED had conducted initial raids at multiple locations in Rajasthan as part of its ongoing investigation.

The ED action comes a month before Congress-ruled Rajasthan goes to polls. The 200-member Rajasthan Assembly elections are scheduled for November 25, with Dotasra contesting as the Congress candidate from the Lacchmangarh seat in Sikar, where he faces BJP's Subhash Maharia. Dotasra is the incumbent MLA representing this constituency.

ED has been actively investigating money laundering related to the leak of the Grade II teacher competitive examination question paper in December of the previous year. In the paper leak case, a total of 55 individuals, including 37 candidates, were apprehended. According to the ED's findings, at least 180 candidates received the leaked question papers in exchange for sums ranging from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 10 lakh each.

Apart from the arrests of Babulal Katara and Anil Kumar Meena, another individual named Bhupendra Saran, implicated in the paper leak racket, was also apprehended by the ED on money laundering charges. In a recent development, earlier this month, the ED conducted searches at the residence and office of Dinesh Khodaniya, a Congress leader and associate of Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, in connection with the paper leak case.

Additionally, the probe agency carried out searches at the premises of Ashok Jain, another Congress leader, and Spardha Choudhary, who is presently affiliated with the Hanuman Beniwal-led Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP). These raids were conducted at nine locations in Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Dungarpur.