Rakesh Sachan, a minister in the Uttar Pradesh government, has been accused of fleeing from a court in Kanpur on Friday, 5 August.
Opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, alleged that Sachan fled the court before the quantum of the sentence could be announced after he was held guilty in a 1991 case of keeping an illegal weapon.
Rakesh Sachan, heads the medium, small, and micro enterprises and khadi departments in UP. He was previously in the Congress party and joined the BJP ahead of the 2022 state Assembly elections.
Minister Issues Clarification
Sachan on Saturday, 6 August, spoke to reporters and clarified that the accusation of him 'fleeing' the court premises were only 'rumours'.
"I have never run away in my life. I reached the court a little before 11 am and requested for the case to be expedited since I had other engagements. The lawyer said it would take time and I requested him to put in an exemption application. After that, I left," he told reporters on Saturday.
Sachan also shared images of him attending a meeting with party workers late on Friday.
'Investigation Underway,' Says UP Police
Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Kanpur police officials said that they've received a complaint from the court officials and that an investigation is underway.
"We have been trying to get in touch with all stakeholders. We are taking our enquiry forward. Once the enquiry is complete, we will proceed according to the law," Kanpur senior police officer Anand Prakash Tiwari said.
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