Dehradun, Oct 18 Uttarakhand’s Minister for Women Empowerment Rekha Arya, who has filed a complaint against her husband accusing him of physical assault and harassment, was discharged from a hospital here, while the SIT investigating the case visited her husband’s house in Bareilly.
An FIR in the matter was filed on October 15 and she was admitted to hospital later that day. She was discharged from the hospital Saturday evening.
The nine-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) also reached Bareilly on Saturday evening, where it conducted inquiries at the residence of Arya’s husband, Girdhari Lal Sahu, and other places, sources said.
With her health improving, the SIT is likely to record her statement this week, they said, adding that the team is currently gathering evidence related to the allegations made by the minister.
Arya had filed a complaint against her husband, Girdhari Lal Sahu, and released a video on a social media platform, accusing him of physical assault, harassment, using caste-based slurs and issuing death threats. He has denied the allegations.
On Sunday, Arya offered prayers at the Tapkeshwar Mahadev Temple in Dehradun and participated in special Sharadiya Navratri rituals being held at the Mata Vaishno Devi Gufa Yoga Mandir. She also performed ‘Kanya Pujan’ on the 8th day of Navratra.
In a message on social media, Arya thanked Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and her other colleagues for their “support”.
She said, “You are all aware of the circumstances I am currently facing; yet, in this difficult time, I wish to express my deepest, heartfelt gratitude to the Chief Minister, Pushkar Singh Dhami, and the entire government; my female colleagues and fellow public representatives from the Bharatiya Janata Party….”
She also expressed gratitude to “all office-bearers of the organisation; all respected colleagues from both the ruling and opposition parties; the dedicated party workers of Someshwar – who are as dear to me as my own life—and all my well-wishers, both within the country and abroad, for their support.”
“This affection from you is my true strength…,” she said
The minister said she has recovered and is now resuming “my service to the people — whom I hold in the same regard as deities — and continuing to fulfil my constitutional responsibilities.”
Sahu had on Friday released a video accusing the minister of corruption, claiming that she possesses illegal assets worth Rs 210 crore. He demanded that the chief minister initiate an investigation by an appropriate agency. Arya, however, refuted the allegations.
Sahu did not provide any documentary evidence to support these allegations. He claimed that an audio recording, shared by the minister on Thursday evening, was a fake, AI-generated and fabricated “to sow discord within the family.”
Sahu dismissed all allegations levelled against him as “baseless”. In the video, he appealed to Arya to withdraw her complaint and retract her statement, maintaining that the accusations against him are false.
(PTI News)
