Surat: Vice Chairman of SUMUL dairy, Raju Pathak is the latest person to be questioned by the Surat city police crime branch in CR Patil defamation case, FIR for which is filed by Choryashi BJP MLA Sandip Desai.

Pathak was questioned by the crime branch for around five hours on Thursday in this case in which defamatory material targetting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Gujarat unit chief and Navsari Lok Sabha constituency representative CR Patil was circulated through post among BJP office bearers, elected representatives and others.

Raju Pathak is believed close to former minister and former Speaker of the State Assembly, Ganpat Vasava, who is presently a BJP legislator. Vasava’s personal assistant Solanki is one of the accused in this case.

Pathak was taken from his Vesu-based residence for questioning after the crime branch during its investigation found call records of long talks between Raju Pathak and Ganpat Vasava’s PA Solanki. Pathak has reportedly told police during questioning that he had phone conversations with Vasava and Solanki routinely, as they belong to the same Taluka.  It’s worth noting that Pathak was formerly the Chairman of SUMUL Dairy. In the last election of SUMUL, the ruling party BJP chose another candidate to become Chairman of the dairy, while Pathak was made vice chairman.

Dipu Yadav, Rakesh Solanki, and Khumansinh Patel, the accused in this case who circulated the covers containing leaflets and pen drives were arrested and later released on bail, but arrested again after the addition of more IPC sections against them in the same FIR with the local court approval.

The letters sent to BJP leaders from post boxes in Palej and Bharuchh sought to malign state BJP president C R Paatil, MLA Sangeeta Patil, MLA Sandeep Desai, chairman of SMC Standing Committee Paresh Patel, Jignesh Patil, Chotu Patil, Amitsinh Rajput, and other leaders.

The Surat district BJP chief Bharat Rathod earlier suspended former minister Ganpat Vasava’s personal assistant Rakesh Solanki, Tarsadi Nagar BJP president Devendra Chauhan and executive president Hardipsinh Atodaria in connection with this row. DeshGujarat