Trinamool Congress spokesperson Saket Gokhale, who was arrested by Gujarat police in Delhi on suspicion of misusing money raised through crowdfunding for his website, reportedly admitted to transferring Rs 79 lakh into his account.
The Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch apprehended Gokhale (CCB). According to the CCB, the TMC spokesperson misappropriated funds intended for a website dedicated to democratic research and policy, which he transferred to his personal account. During the interrogation, he revealed that he had transferred Rs 79 lakh into his account from funds raised through crowdfunding, according to the police.
On December 28, 2022, a complaint was filed against the TMC spokesperson with the Ahmedabad City Cybercrime. Based on the complaint, the CCB charged Gokhale under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) as well as the provisions of the IT Act and launched an investigation. Saket was eventually apprehended on December 29, 2022.
TMC delegation meets with CEC over Saket Gokhale’s alleged harassment.
Gujarat police had arrested Gokhale for the third time since December. The CCB arrested him for the first time on December 6 for allegedly spreading false information about the cost of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Morbi town following a bridge collapse that killed more than 100 people.
On December 1, Gokhale shared a news clipping allegedly obtained through the Right to Information claiming that Modi’s visit to Morbi following the bridge collapse cost Rs 30 crore. Soon after being granted bail by a local court, the TMC leader was detained by Morbi police on December 8 for the same offence. The next day, he was granted bail.