Delhi Police To Question Ex-Minister Rajendra Gautam Over His Presence At 'Conversion' Event On Tuesday

Religious Conversion Event: Rajendra Pal Gautam resigned from his post on Sunday amid a controversy over his presence at the religious conversion event.

Delhi Social Welfare Minister At An Event Held On Wednesday at Ambedkar Bhavan ( Image Source :Twitter/@dvRajendraPal )

The Delhi Police will question Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA and former minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Tuesday over his presence at a religious conversion event where Hindu deities were allegedly denounced, news agency PTI reported. 

"The former minister will be questioned about his presence in the event and details will be sought from him regarding what actually happened there," a police official told PTI. 

Delhi Police to question former Delhi minister Rajendra Pal Gautam on Tuesday over religious conversion event: Officials

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 10, 2022

He has been issued a notice to appear for questioning along with some others, the senior police official further said.

Gautam, who was the Minister for Social Welfare, SC and ST, Registrar of Co-operative Societies and Gurudwara elections, had resigned from his post on Sunday amid a controversy over his presence at a religious conversion event.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has accepted Gautam's resignation and sent it to the Lieutenant Governor, who has forwarded it to the President for approval.

Gautam said he was resigning as minister as he does not want his leader or the AAP to be in trouble because of him, PTI reported.

The BJP had used the issue to attack Kejriwal during election campaigning in Gujarat and accused him of being "anti-Hindu". Gujarat goes to polls later this year.

Gautam stated in a letter posted on Twitter that he attended the event in his personal capacity and that it had nothing to do with his party or the ministry. He slammed the BJP for targeting Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), accusing it of playing  "dirty politics" on the issue.

आज महर्षि वाल्मीकि जी का प्रकटोत्सव दिवस है एवं दूसरी ओर मान्यवर कांशीराम साहेब की पुण्यतिथि भी है। ऐसे संयोग में आज मैं कई बंधनों से मुक्त हुआ और आज मेरा नया जन्म हुआ है। अब मैं और अधिक मज़बूती से समाज पर होने वाले अत्याचारों व अधिकारों की लड़ाई को बिना किसी बंधन के जारी रखूँगा pic.twitter.com/buwnHYVgG8

— Rajendra Pal Gautam (@AdvRajendraPal) October 9, 2022

The former AAP minister attended a "mass conversion" event last week, where over 10,000 people gathered at Ambedkar Bhavan in the national capital to be initiated into Buddhism. 

In a video from the event that went viral, Gautam, along with others, can be seen taking an oath and saying, "I shall have no faith in Brahma, Vishnu, or Maheshwara, nor shall I worship them." "I will not worship or believe in Rama and Krishna, who are thought to be God's incarnations," Gautam can be heard saying.

(With Inputs From PTI)