HC rules in Vasundhara Raje fake letter case:Probe against Jaipur police to continue; Congress workers may seek compensation

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Friday delivered its verdict in the case of an alleged fake letter circulated in the name of former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. Hearing a habeas corpus petition over the custody of three Congress IT cell workers, the court directed the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) in Bhopal to examine the workers’ statements that formed the basis of the complaint, while allowing the investigation against the Jaipur Police officers concerned to continue. The division bench of Acting Chief Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Pradeep Mittal also said that if the three Congress workers seek compensation for their alleged illegal detention, they may file a separate petition before the competent court. The court further ordered that the investigation into the FIR should continue. All three workers taken into custody in April The case is from 19 and 20 April, 2026. Rajasthan Police, with the cooperation of Madhya Pradesh Police, had taken Nikhil Prajapati alias Atul Prajapati, Bilal Khan, and Inam Ahmed, associated with the Congress IT cell, into custody. The petition alleged that the three were illegally held for two days at the Cyber Crime Police Station, Bhopal, and were not produced before any magistrate during this period. Government presented its side The state government informed the court that the three were called for questioning on oral information from Rajasthan Police and were later handed over to their family members. After this, Rajasthan Police informed about the registration of an FIR, following which they were again called to the Cyber Cell the next day and handed over to Rajasthan Police. HC called for CCTV footage During the hearing, the High Court had directed the production of CCTV footage from the concerned police station and the three youths in court. On the court’s order, the Rajasthan Police presented all three. Subsequently, the Division Bench instructed the Chief Judicial Magistrate to record their separate statements. The three youths, in their statements, refuted the claims made by the Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh Police. Following this, the High Court reprimanded the police of both states and directed that copies of the victims’ statements be sent to the Bhopal Police Commissioner. Investigation underway On the court’s directive, action was initiated by treating the victims’ statements as a complaint under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The court was informed that an FIR has been registered against the concerned police officers, and a departmental inquiry is also ongoing. Separate petition can be filed for compensation The High Court, in its final order, stated that all three accused have been duly presented in court and have also been granted bail. If they seek compensation for the alleged illegal detention, they will have to file a separate petition for this in the concerned court. What was the case of the viral letter? This case is related to an alleged fake letter that went viral on social media in the name of former Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. The viral letter made several claims regarding BJP’s election strategy, delimitation, SC-ST and OBC representation, division of opposition votes, and women’s reservation. At the end of the letter, Vasundhara Raje’s alleged signature was also shown, and it was addressed to Mohan Bhagwat, the Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. A case was registered in Rajasthan regarding the dissemination of this alleged fake letter.