Uttaranchal minister quits amid scandal

DEHRA DUN: Uttaranchal’s revenue minister Harak Singh Rawat tearfully announced his resignation in the state assembly on Wednesday, after he was accused of having made a woman pregnant.
Speaker Yashpal Arya adjourned the House four times, after Opposition parties refused to allow the assembly to function and demanded a discussion on the issue. Arya finally sent a five-member all-party delegation to visit the woman and confirm the fact.They came back with their report, which he sent on to the government. As the Opposition was shouting for it to be tabled in the House, Rawat tearfully said he had been framed by his own colleagues and members of the Opposition, with help from the government’s chief secretary.
‘‘I am resigning and will return to this House only after my name is cleared...my wife and I had only tried to help this woman,’’ he said.
Chief minister Narayan Datt Tiwari was absent from the House throughout the day and the Speaker adjourned proceedings once Rawat announced his resignation.
Opposition leader Bhagat Singh Koshyari later led a delegation to state governor Sudarshan Agarwal, stating that Rawat’s allegations against his own colleagues and the chief secretary called for the Tiwari Cabinet’s immediate dismissal.
The woman, Jaini (24) from Assam, has been in a government home for destitute women for the past seven months.
She delivered a baby on June 9 in a hospital. She was discharged after two days, but was brought back on June 13 after developing some problems. She then blamed Rawat for her predicament. She repeated the story to the five MLAs.