AAP Gujarat Chief Says Rs 830 Crore Spent On 'Mann Ki Baat', Faces Police Case

Police have registered a case against Aam Aadmi Party's Gujarat president Isudan Gadhvi for allegedly claiming through a tweet that the Centre has so far spent Rs 830 crore of the taxpayers' money on 100 episodes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat' radio programme, an official said on Monday.

The case was registered on Saturday after it was found that Mr Gadhvi made the claim without any relevant data to support it, he said.

While the tweet has been deleted by Mr Gadhvi, the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was harassing its leaders through such "false" FIRs.

The 100th episode of PM Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat' radio address was broadcast on Sunday.

On April 28, Mr Gadhvi in a tweet claimed, "One episode of Mann Ki Baat costs Rs 8.3 crore! Which means that the Centre has spent Rs 830 crore on 100 episodes so far. This is too much. BJP workers should register their protest, because mostly they listen to this programme." Taking cognisance of the tweet, the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch registered an FIR against Gadhvi on April 29 under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Information Technology Act, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Cyber Crime, JM Yadav said at a press conference.

The case against Mr Gadhvi was registered under various IPC sections including 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 500 (defamation), 505(1)(b)and(c) (publishing rumour or report with intent to cause fear or alarm to the public, or inciting people to commit an offence against the state or against public tranquility) and 505(2) (statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes), he said.

"Police are the complainant on behalf of the government. The FIR was registered on April 29 at the Cyber Crime Branch after it was found that Gadhvi had tweeted against 'Mann Ki Baat' without any reliable data to back his claim. We will gather evidence and then proceed further. He has not been arrested yet," Yadav said.

On Sunday, the PIB Fact Check Twitter handle tagged a screenshot of Mr Gadhvi's tweet and said the AAP leader's claim that Rs 830 crore was spent on 'Mann Ki Baat' was "misleading".

"This Claim is Misleading. Rs 8.3 cr is the total figure of ads for Mann ki Baat till said date, not for a single episode. Tweet assumes each episode is supported by ads. Which is false," the PIB Fact Check tweeted.

AAP's national joint secretary and former Gujarat party chief Gopal Italia claimed the case against Mr Gadhvi was registered on false charges.

"Gadhvi has been booked over a tweet. This shows how the BJP fears AAP. The BJP and its government have repeatedly lodged false FIRs against us to stop and break us. But, we will continue to fight," said Italia.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)