Was Varun Gandhi bailed out by UP govt in hate speech cases? Headlines Today sting operation suggests so

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May 16, 2013, 12:36:15 PM5/16/13

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Was Varun Gandhi bailed out by UP govt in hate speech cases? Headlines Today sting operation suggests so

Despite delivering venomous hate speeches in full public view ahead of the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, young BJP leader Varun Gandhi was spared by different courts of Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh recently as witnesses turned hostile one-by-one during the prosecution.

An explosive Tehelka-Headlines Today investigation, however, uncovered how the youth icon of BJP sabotaged the legal process. In a sting operation, many of the 88 witnesses who turned hostile during the hearing were caught on hidden cameras admitting to being coerced or bribed into changing their testimony.

MUST READ: Did Varun Gandhi order division of BJP votes in Pilibhit to let SP candidate win from Pilibhit?

The Nehru-Gandhi scion, who was recently elevated to the position of BJP's general secretary, had shocked the nation with his hate rant going viral in the run up to the 2009 polls, but his subsequent acquittals by the respective courts were even more astonishing.

All 34 witnesses in the hate speech case of Barkhera were declared hostile as the policemen, who were deployed at the venue as part of security arrangement, gave ridiculous statements in the court, be it constable Kishore Puri, head constable Hetram, Ramendra Pal, Mathura Prasad or Ram Avtar.

Policeman's admission on hidden camera

Policeman Ram Avtar was made an eyewitness by the police. He was caught doing a complete somersault from his statement in the court on the hidden cameras of Tehelka and Headlines Today.

"I was actually present in Varun's election meeting and I also heard his speech. Besides Barkhera, Varun also gave anti-Muslim speeches at Dadiya Bhagat. Varun asked 'do you want to turn this place into Pakistan'. Policemen came to take me for my testimony," he was captured as saying on hidden cameras.

However, he had earlier in the court, said: "There was no election meeting of Varun at Barkhera and neither did he give any inflammatory speech."

Another witness's account on hidden camera

Yet another witness in the case -- Abdul Rehman, from whose tent house things were hired for the election meeting -- also made a dramatic U-turn from his statement in the court.

"My tents were actually used in the meeting... The lawyers were not asking anything in the court... Everyone had heard Varun's speech but nobody was ready to give the testimony out of fear... 'Everyone is corrupt. A CD is recorded in front of you. It is playing in front of you and still you are denying and saying he did not say that. Tell me what testimony one would give," Rehman asked.

However, in the court he had said: "I had not gone to the election meeting. I was at my shop. The tents were booked for the meeting, but were not sent."

SP leader's admission on hidden camera

Even the Lucknow president of Samajwadi Party, Mohammad Raza, who too had turned hostile in the court, was caught on the hidden cameras talking otherwise.

"Police wrote my testimony on their own. I thought why to get into trouble so I agreed to testify that Varun did not say anything inflammatory," he admitted.

But in the court he had said: "I did not hear Varun's speech. I had also not gone to his rally."

BJP leader's account on hidden camera

BJP's district vice-president of Varun's constituency Pilibhit -- Parmeshwari Dayal Gangwar, considered close to the leader -- gave the most devastating account of his actions.

"I was the in-charge of rally where Varun made the hate speech. Money that was distributed to the sadhus at the meeting was also done by him. Varun had said that if any (beeped out) raises his against a Hindu, cut off his hand, if he raises his head cut off his head. And the biggest disease is in Bisalpur where he would buy a petrol pump and get the fuel sprayed in the area by helicopter before setting the place on fire by Hindus. He said he would get the place vacated in 24 hours," Gangwar revealed.

Barkhera hate speech case background

The hate speech was delivered at Barkhera on March 8, 2009. An FIR was registered on March 17 and the charge-sheet filed on July 11 under Sections 153(A), 295(A), 505(2) of the IPC and Section of 125 Representation of People Act. Number of witnesses: 34.

Did Varun Gandhi order division of BJP votes to let SP candidate win from Pilibhit?

BJP General Secretary Varun Gandhi. Photo: Adnan Abidi/ Reuters

As the then chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati had got the draconian National Security Act (NSA) case slapped against BJP's youth icon Varun Gandhi in a hate speech case of March 2009 that ensured 20-day jail for him ahead of the trial into the case.

However, when the Samajwadi Party returned to power in the state, things suddenly turned in favour of the BJP leader.

In October 2012, reports started emerging of how the Akhilesh Yadav government wanted to take back the cases filed against the Nehru-Gandhi scion. A Tehelka-Headlines Today investigation found out why the SP government was so favourably inclined towards Varun.

Varun, who was recently promoted as the BJP's general secretary, had actually played an important role in defeating his party candidate from Pilibhit Vidhan Sabha constituency - Satpal Gangwar - to ensure victory for SP's Riyaz Ahmed in 2012 election.

The BJP candidate was poised to ride high on Varun's Hindutva wave. However, Varun backstabbed the BJP candidate to get himself off the hook in the hate speech case. After his election, Ahmed went on to become a minister in the state and also led the secret save Varun campaign.

How SP leader was made to convince witnesses to turn hostile

Varun's key aide Parmeshwari Dayal Gangwar, who happens to be BJP's vice president in Pilibhit, nailed his superior by his startling admissions on hidden cameras.

"SP Minister Riyaz Ahmed was given the task of turning the Muslim witnesses hostile. Riyaz Babu is a Minister in the SP government and Gandhiji had direct relations with Mulayam Singh. He said settle all the cases. Then (Jama Masjid Shahi Imam) Bukhari from Delhi raised the issue. Riyaz was pressurised to influence all the Muslims. I was there on that date," Gangwar disclosed.

Audio tape of chat between Varun aides reveals all

The reason for Varun's backing for Ahmed becomes more apparent from the audio recording between his media cell in-charge Rizwan Malik and president of BJP's minority cell Mohammad Sadar.

Excerpts:

Rizwan Malik: Now what can be clearer than his? Varun Gandhi has said that Satpal should not win. Satpal should not get the votes. That's it. He has to lose. Now you have to decide who will defeat him. Whoever is going to win you start working with him. What can I say?

Mohammad Sadar: Then it is fine.

BJP votes were diverted to BSP, says BJP candidate

The BJP candidate who lost the election - Satpal Gangwar - narrated on hidden cameras how the SP leader's victory was scripted.

Excerpts:

Satpal Gangwar: It was said on the phone to support the BSP.

Tehelka-Headlines Today: Make sure BSP wins...

Gangwar: Yes, make sure the BSP wins.

Tehelka-Headlines Today: Is Varun himself giving the instructions or is some close confidant of his giving the instructions?

Gangwar: Varun Gandhi is himself giving the instructions.

Thus SP candidate Riyaz Ahmed won from Pilibhit and has currently been Khadi and Village Industries Minister as well as the state president of the party's minority cell.

More revelations by Varun aide

The suspicion of a quid pro quo became stronger when Tehelka-Headlines Today heard the narrative of Parmeshwari Dayal Gangwar. He detailed how the state police and administration were employed to pressurise witnesses.

"Hindu witnesses turned hostile quite easily under police pressure. The SP used to call them over. There was one witness... the SP called him over. The SP said 'are you literate'. He said he had done his PhD. The SP asked him what his pay was. He said (Rs) 25,000. 'Then you have a good bride'. He said 'yes'. The SP asked him if he loved his wife. He said 'yes'. 'You want to continue loving her or stop loving her? Then go and think about what you have to say in the court. You want to go back or not'," Gangwar said.

Local journalist's account

A local journalist, Shariq Parvez, also corroborated the story of coercion. Moreover, his version was totally different from his statement in the court. He even went on to question the prosecution's role, claiming the public prosecutor's palms had been suitably greased.

"I was constantly getting calls from the administration. The PRO of the SP himself called me up and asked me to give my testimony. M.P. Verma, the public prosecutor, told me that 'Shariq Bhai everything is done'. I understood that they were managing everything from the top. Public prosecutor was given Rs.10 lakh in this case," Parvez said.

However, in the court he had said, "I did not record Varun's speech at Deshnagar. I was not present in the meeting."

Did police deliberately ignore original CD?

Another local journalist Ramveer Singh, who had actually recorded the hate speech, had told the court that the police had not taken the CD from him. However, what he told Tehelka-Headlines Today was entirely different.

"I had heard Varun's inflammatory speech and had recorded it with Tariq. Everyone was bought out. Everyone, including the prosecutor, was bought out," Ramveer Singh said.

While in his statement to the court, the same person had said, "The police had not taken any CD from me."