File photo of suspended IPS officer Amitabh Thakur.
Suspended Uttar Pradesh police officer Amitabh Thakur has submitted his reply to the charge sheet slapped on him by the UP government accusing him of dereliction of duty, saying he never flouted rules and manuals and was "not at fault".
"I was given 15 days to reply to the charge sheet but I have submitted it within 24 hours...I am not at fault in any of the 16 points stated in the charge sheet," Mr Thakur told reporters.
"I have never ever been lax towards my duties nor have flouted rules and manuals," he asserted.
The IG-rank officer went to the DGP headquarters and submitted his point-wise 30-page reply to IG personnel. The reply to the 16-point charge sheet was addressed to Principal Secretary, Home.
On Wednesday, Mr Thakur, who had lodged a complaint against Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav for allegedly threatening him, was slapped with a 200-page charge sheet by UP government accusing him of dereliction of duty, anti-establishment approach and flouting court orders.
Mr Thakur was suspended on July 13 by the Uttar Pradesh government hours after he had approached the Union Home Ministry in New Delhi seeking a CBI probe into the rape charges filed against him after he lodged a complaint against SP supremo Yadav for allegedly threatening him.
Mr Thakur said his suspension and charge sheet was to harass him.
"No effort was made to know my version nor was there any move to get a report from the civil defence (where he was posted at the time of suspension as IG)," he said.
When queried as to what prompted the government to act against him, Mr Thakur said, "It was because me and my wife (Nutan Thakur's) social activities were causing problems for some influential people."
Justifying his actions, Mr Thakur said his social activities are as per the amended conduct of rules 2014 and fundamental rights under which one could help others in their fight for equality and justice.
He stressed on setting aside the charges levelled against him.
Mr Thakur, who is locked in a tussle with the state government over alleged threatening phone call by the SP supremo after which rape charges were also levelled against him, said he would soon go to court in connection with these two cases.
The official stirred a political storm by releasing the text and audio of the conversation allegedly carrying Mulayam Singh Yadav's voice.