Rajasthan minister Mahesh Joshi's son, Rohit Joshi, has been booked for rape based on the complaint of a 23-year-old woman from Jaipur, who alleged that Rohit Joshi had raped her on multiple occasions for over a year, the police said on Sunday, 8 May, news agency PTI reported.
Congress leader Mahesh Joshi is the Minister for Public Health Engineering in the Rajasthan government.
The Delhi Police has registered a zero First Information Report (FIR), with a senior Delhi Police officer saying that the Rajasthan Police has been informed about the FIR and will further investigate the matter. A zero FIR can be registered anywhere in the country.
"Based on the complaint of the woman, we have registered a zero FIR. We have also informed the Rajasthan Police, which will further investigate the matter," the senior Delhi Police officer said.
In her complaint, the woman alleged the minister's son raped her on several occasions between 8 January 2021 and 17 April 2022 and also promised to marry her.
The police informed that the case was registered on 8 May at a police station in North District under sections 376 (rape), 328 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc with intent to commit an offence), 312 (causing miscarriage), 366 (kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her for marriage, etc), 377 (unnatural offences), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The Woman Met Rohit Joshi on Facebook
The woman said she met Rohit Joshi on Facebook in 2021 and had been in contact with him since then. The two first met in Jaipur, and he allegedly invited her to Sawai Madhopur on 8 January 2021.
The woman alleged that the minister's son spiked her drink and took advantage of it during their first meeting. According to the FIR, when she woke up the next morning, he showed her nude photographs and videos, which worried her.
She also alleged that Rohit Joshi forced himself upon her during another meeting in Delhi.
"Rohit made me stay at a hotel where he got our names registered as husband and wife. He then promised to marry me... but then he got drunk and abused me... He would beat me up and make obscene videos of me. He would threaten to upload them and make them viral," the woman alleged.
She further stated that she found out on 11 August 2021 that she was pregnant with his baby and alleged that he forced her to take a pill, but she didn't.
Rajasthan minister Pramod Jain Bhaya has responded to allegations of rape by stating, "Allegations and counter-accusations are common in politics."
Mahesh Joshi told India Today that he had left Jaipur and would return the following day. Meanwhile, his son, Rohit, refused to speak to the media. Both claimed to have learned about the case through social media.
(With inputs from PTI and India Today.)
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