Booked for assault, Uttarakhand minister’s husband hits back with corruption claims

Uttarakhand Women and Child Development Minister Rekha Arya’s husband, Girdhari Lal Sahu, on Friday accused her of amassing illegal assets worth Rs 210 crore – a day after the BJP leader accused him of physical assault, harassment, caste-based abuse and death threats.

In a video, Sahu urged Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to order an investigation into the allegations against Arya. Calling for a probe by an appropriate agency into the alleged corruption, Sahu, though, did not furnish any documentary evidence to support his claims, only saying he would reveal the details in near future.

He also rejected an audio recording shared by Arya, alleging a plan to kill her, as “fake, AI-generated and fabricated”.

Arya had lodged an FIR against Sahu at the Cantt police station in Dehradun on Thursday. She checked into a hospital on Friday after her health deteriorated, sources said.

Claiming that the recording was intended to create discord within the family, Sahu urged the minister to withdraw the FIR and retract her statements. He termed all the allegations against him as baseless.

Sahu accused Arya of becoming arrogant after assuming public office, claiming he had managed her election campaigns and sought votes for her for 17 years.

“You are being arrogant on the basis of the belief that you will remain a minister or an elected representative all your life. But that is not how life works. It is full of ups and downs. Today you are in power, but you have forgotten the days when I helped you reach where you are today,” he said in a video, seemingly filmed inside a car.

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Claiming that his role in Arya’s rise was widely known across Uttarakhand, Sahu warned her: “If you do not take back your statement, then Bhole Baba will hold you accountable for every single thing.”

On Thursday, Arya had shared a video on social media accusing Sahu of assaulting and harassing her, using caste-based slurs and threatening to kill her. The FIR was registered under relevant legal provisions, including three sections of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

In the complaint dated October 15, Arya alleged that Sahu had concealed an earlier marriage from her, assaulted and threatened her, and used forged documents to remove her from directorships in certain companies. She also referred to an audio recording that she suspects contains a conversation between Sahu and another woman about a plot to kill her.

Congress demands probe

The Congress has demanded an impartial investigation and questioned CM Dhami over the steps taken to protect the minister.

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Congress Spokesperson Garima Mehra Dasauni called the matter deeply distressing and demanded a fair investigation into the case and forensic examination of the audio recording.

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An Award-winning journalist covering the state of Uttarakhand, Vidheesha Kuntamalla has reported on education, policy and social justice. She has broken news and written investigative stories on education, some of which have prompted responses from central universities and government authorities. She uses the Right to Information Act as a reporting tool and enjoys telling people-driven stories through long-form journalism. Vidheesha joined The Indian Express’s Delhi City team in 2023, where she has been part of the education coverage in the newsroom, reporting on policy, institutions, and issues affecting students and communities. Her journalism career began in 2020 as a freelance journalist after she left a career in civil engineering. She covered her home states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, focusing on gender, social justice, and politics. Vidheesha Kuntamalla Qualification, Degrees: Master of Science in Quantity Surveying from Kingston University, London Awards and Recognition: Vidheesha won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2024 for her long-form story on India’s first case of passive euthanasia. ... Read More