Police arrest Ashok Gehlot's former OSD Lokesh in phone tapping case

The Delhi Police Crime Branch has arrested Lokesh Sharma, the former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to ex-Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, in connection with a phone-tapping case.

Sharma was arrested and later granted bail by the court. He had been summoned multiple times by the Delhi Police for questioning in the case.

On March 25, 2021, the Delhi Police registered an FIR against Sharma on charges of criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, and unlawful interception of telegraphic signals (telephonic conversations). The complaint was filed by Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, the BJP MP from Jodhpur.

Earlier this year, in a startling revelation, Sharma alleged that the purported audio clip of a phone conversation involving Union Minister Shekhawat and certain Congress figures, discussing the ousting of the Congress government in 2020, was provided to him by Gehlot.

Sharma further claimed that Gehlot was involved in tapping the phones of rebel Congress leaders, including Sachin Pilot. He stated that the audio clips of rebel Congress leaders, which were shared with news organisations, had been given to him by the former Rajasthan Chief Minister.

"Until now, I told everyone that I received those audio clips from social media. But that is not the truth. On July 16, 2020, some audio clips went viral through the media because I shared them using my phone number. In those audios, there was a conspiracy to topple the government by poaching MLAs," Sharma said during a press conference on April 25 in Jaipur.

He elaborated, "On July 16, 2020, Ashok Gehlot came to Hotel Fairmont, where the rebel leaders were staying. An hour after the CM left, his PSO Ramniwas called me and asked me to come to the CM House as the CM wanted to meet me. When I arrived, the CM handed me a pen drive and a paper, which I circulated through the media. The paper allegedly referred to a conversation between Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Late MLA Bhanwarlal Sharma, and Sanjay Jain, and the pen drive contained their audio."

Responding to these allegations, Ashok Gehlot dismissed them and emphasised focusing on the truth amid the political climate.

"I do not know what revelations he has made. I don't delve into such matters. Given the political environment, people switching parties is quite common. It's more important to focus on the truth rather than getting caught up in who's saying what," Gehlot said.