Audio clips over bribery demand by suspended Mahoba SP appear on social media

Five audio clips with conversations on bribes being allegedly demanded from stone traders by suspended Mahoba SP Manilal Patidar have surfaced on social media. Two of them are linked to slain trader Indrakant Tripathi, who died in Kanpur on Sunday.

Mahoba (Uttar Pradesh): Five audio clips with conversations on bribes being allegedly demanded from stone traders by suspended Mahoba SP Manilal Patidar have surfaced on social media.

At least two of the purported audio clips are linked to slain trader Indrakant Tripathi, who died in Kanpur on Sunday after he was attacked by unidentified assailants.

The incident took place soon after he levelled allegations of corruption against the ex-Mahoba SP.

Patidar was suspended by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and a Vigilance inquiry was ordered against him. The UP DGP had also constituted an SIT to probe the matter.

According to the murdered stone trader's family, the audio clips pertain to the phone calls made for bribe on behalf of Patidar.

In one of the audio clips, a person can be heard talking to the victim's brother-in-law Brijesh Shukla. He identifies himself as Ashu Bhadauria.

I am Ashu Bhadauria calling from Mahoba. Where is your brother-in-law Indrakant. Find out immediately. Tell him that Raja Sahib is angry. Wherever he is, ask him to call, the man can be heard in the audio clip.

The trader's nephew, Abhinav Tripathi, alleged that Bhadauria is a confidante of the suspended SP and used to extort money for him from traders and had used Raja Sahib for Patidar.

Another audio clip, according to Abhinav Tripathi, is that of a conversation between a former MLA and his uncle, in which there is a talk over the SP taking a bribe of Rs 5 lakh.

The former MLA is allegedly heard saying that the SP wants Rs 15 lakh for every death in a stone mine and Rs 15,000 every month per mine.

The ex-MLA says he has complained to the DGP in this regard.

In other viral audio clips, traders can be heard talking about "deals" with the suspended SP.

On a complaint by the trader's brother Ravikant, a case was registered against Patidar, former Kabrai SHO Devendra Shukla and two others -- Suresh Soni and Brahmadutt -- under various sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act.

(PTI REPORT)