OSD to Rajasthan CM appears before Delhi Police for questioning in phone-tapping case

New Delhi: Lokesh Sharma, the OSD to Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, on Monday appeared before Delhi Police for questioning in connection with a phone-tapping case stemming from the July 2020 political crisis in the state, officials said.
Sharma appeared before the city police's Crime Branch unit, a senior officer said.
He was questioned for one and a half hours and gave verbal as well as written answers, an official said.
The Delhi Police had served a notice on Sharma -- the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to the Rajasthan chief minister -- asking him to appear for questioning in the case.

The notice was issued days before the Delhi High Court is scheduled to hear the Crime Branch's application seeking vacating of an interim order staying coercive action against Sharma.
Hearing on the Crime Branch application and a petition by Sharma seeking quashing of the FIR against him is scheduled for February 20.
On March 25, 2021, the Delhi Police registered an FIR against Sharma for criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and unlawfully intercepting telegraphic signals (telephonic conversation) on a complaint lodged by Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, the BJP MP from Jodhpur.

According to sources, this is the sixth notice to Sharma under Section 41.1 (A) of the CrPC.
Sharma has appeared for questioning twice -- on December 6, 2021, and May 14, 2022 -- and submitted reasons for not being able to appear on three other dates.
The phone-tapping controversy dates to the July 2020 political crisis in Congress-ruled Rajasthan.
Audio clips of alleged telephonic conversations between Shekhawat and Congress leaders surfaced amid a rebellion against CM Gehlot by his then-deputy Sachin Pilot and 18 party MLAs supporting him.
It was claimed that Sharma circulated the purported clips about an alleged conspiracy to topple the Congress government. Sharma has dismissed the allegations.