Convicted U.P. Minister flees with order

On August 13, 1991, station officer of Naubasta police station filed the case against Sachan, after a weapon of a relative was found in his possession

NEW DELHI

After being found guilty in a 31-year-old Arms Act case on Saturday by a Kanpur court, State’s Cabinet Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Rakesh Sachan allegedly fled with the copy of the court order. In the complaint filed at the Kotwali police station in Kanpur, the Reader at Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) office, alleged that the minister who has been found guilty in case number 729/1991 under Section 20, 25 and 30 of Arms Act fled with the copy of the court order.

The matter dates back to August 13, 1991, when station officer of Naubasta police station filed the case against Mr. Sachan, after a weapon of a relative was found in his possession. He failed to show license on the spot.

The Opposition attacked the government on the issue and asked the Chief Minister to immediately take resignation from Mr. Sachan. A tweet from the official handle of the Samajwadi Party (SP) reads, “cabinet minister Rakesh Sachan fled from court after getting convicted in an old case. Chief Minister should take resignation immediately,”.

“We need to wait. If any decision of the honorable court comes, the minister’s membership will automatically get nullified. As of now, I am not aware of the whole matter as conflicting information is coming out,” said Mr. Rakesh Tripathi, Uttar Pradesh BJP spokesperson.

Mr. Sachan, who joined the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) before the 2022 assembly polls, started his political career with the SP. He is considered as an influential OBC leader in central Uttar Pradesh and has also served as a Lok Sabha member from Fatehpur constituency between 2009 and 2014.