Jaipur:
There is more trouble for the sacked minister of the Ashok Gehlot government, Mahipal Maderna. He has now been suspended by the Congress party for his alleged role in the missing midwife Bhanwari Devi case. Mr Gehlot had sacked Mr Maderna from his Cabinet on October 16.
Maderna was questioned by the CBI on Saturday following which he was hospitalised late last night after he complained of being unwell. Maderna is in the ICU of Mahatma Gandhi Hospital right now.
The CBI had asked Maderna to come for another round of questioning, but he failed to turn up and sent a medical certificate to the concerned CBI officials, agency sources said.
After getting the certificate, CBI exempted Maderna from questioning on health grounds.
Action against Maderna was on the cards with the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee (RPCC) contemplating action after a CD purportedly showing him in a compromising position with Bhanwari came into public domain. The controversy involving Maderna has hit the Ashok Gehlot government amid calls by Opposition BJP for the Chief Minister's resignation.
Maderna's suspension in an apparent clean up act by Congress came hours after another minister, Ramlal Jat, resigned in the wake of a media report in which allegations were levelled against him.
The report alleged that Jat, Minister of State for Forest and Environment in Rajasthan, had tried to pressurise the Bhilwara district administration to conduct post-mortem on a woman in the middle of the night in September.
Paras Devi, wife of the Bhilwara Dairy chairman Ratanlal Jat, died in mysterious circumstances in a hospital, according to the report in a vernacular dialy.
Meanwhile, CBI continued questioning Congress MLA Malkhan Singh and Maderna's wife Leela for the second consecutive day in Jodhpur in connection with the Bhanwari case.
Leela defended her husband claiming he is innocent and that the CD in question "was fabricated".
The Bhanwari Devi case has put the Rajasthan government under the scanner. Two Congress leaders, former Water Resources Minister Mahipal Maderna and Luni MLA Malkhan Singh are in the dock for the disappearance of midwife auxiliary nurse Bhanwari Devi. Both are suspected of having illicit relations with Bhanwari Devi and as a result, are being questioned by the CBI.
(With PTI inputs)