'Cash-for-no query': ACB digs up 20L buried in lawn

Jaipur: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Monday recovered the Rs 20 lakh bribe money allegedly received by Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP) MLA Jaikrishn Patel. This recovery came a day after his personal assistant (PA) fled with the cash during the agency's trap operation. The cash was found in Indira Gandhi Nagar, where it was buried under a lawn.

Officials said Patel's personal assistant, Rohit Meena, initially handed over the bribe money to his uncle, Laxman Meena alias Jaswant, who later passed it to Jagram Meena, an old acquaintance. Both were arrested on Monday. During interrogation, Laxman revealed he gave the cash to Jagaram who claimed that he was led to belive it to be related to a land deal,and buried the bag in the lawn and poured water over it.

"We had information that Rohit handed over the cash to Laxman while fleeing. A team went to the latter's house in Indira Gandhi Nagar, but all lights were switched off on Sunday. We returned to the same location on Monday morning and arrested him from there," an official said. A team led by DIG Rahul Katoki, which included Additional SP Sandeep Saswat, recovered the money on Monday.

ACB officials confirmed that all currency notes were new, withdrawn from a bank, and their serial numbers matched those recorded before the trap. The GPS device planted inside the bag was removed by Rohit, complicating efforts to track the cash.

"We will send the CCTV footage from the MLA quarters for forensic analysis and also obtain records of questions the legislator submitted to the Vidhan Sabha," said an official. Patel was produced before court on Monday and was remanded to ACB custody for two days.