Former UP minister Gayatri Prajapati (File Photo)
An FIR has been lodged against former Uttar Pradesh minister Gayatri Prajapati for allegedly making an extortion call to a Varanasi-based businessman.
Prajapati is in Lucknow district jail since his arrest in March last year in a rape case. Later, a few more cases were lodged against him.
Following a complaint by one Arvind Tiwari, who owns a mattress shop, police Saturday lodged an FIR against Prajapati under IPC section 384 (Punishment for extortion) at Dashshwamedh police station. SHO Raghvendra Tripathi said, “Arvind told police that on June 9, he received a call from an unknown number. The caller identified himself as Prajapati and asked him to visit Lucknow jail and pay commission for being allotted a mining block in Sonbhadra in 2014. The caller also threatened Arvind of dire consequences if he failed to pay up.”
“Arvind has said that when he told the caller that his tender was cancelled, the latter still insisted that he visit,” Tripathi said.