Uttarakhand Sting Row: Harish Rawat to be quizzed by CBI again

DEHRADUN: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat will be again questioned today by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the ongoing preliminary enquiry against him over the sting operation expose where Rawat was shown ‘offering bribe’ to rebel Congress MLAs to save his government. After the video of the sting operation was out in open, Rawat rubbished the allegations and called it a conspiracy against him. "I believe the entire nation is watching this. And very soon there will be a solution to this conspiracy," he said. Meanwhile, Uttarakhand BJP president Ajay Bhatt lashed out at Rawat saying “Why is he blaming us? The CBI is an independent agency. He should better cooperate in this matter rather than blaming anyone". Earlier, the Uttarakhand High Court had refused to quash the ongoing CBI probe into the sting operation, following which the agency had summoned the Chief Minister. The Uttarakhand Chief Minister was stung in March, when rebel Congress MLAs voted against the state budget, triggering a political crisis. Later, Rawat was ousted from the post of Chief Minister by the Centre, and President's rule was imposed in the state. However, Congress knocked court’s door and Rawat returned as Chief Minister after winning a trust vote ordered by the Supreme Court earlier this month.