A newspaper clipping from Patrika News is going viral on social media with the headline, “Asthana had given ₹20 crore of Police Welfare Fund as election donation to BJP.”
The newspaper clipping states that Rakesh Asthana, while serving as the Police Commissioner in Surat, allegedly donated ₹20 crore from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP as an election fund. This revelation was reportedly made by a retired sub-inspector of the Surat Police in an email sent to the CBI. At that time, Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat. The email claimed that the fund was supposed to be returned, but it never was. In connection with this matter, the Income Tax Department also issued a notice regarding TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) payment. Subsequently, documents related to the Police Welfare Fund reportedly went missing from the office. It is said that this matter was not reported to the Surat Crime Branch or the Audit Department.
With this newspaper clipping it is being claimed that former CBI Special Director and retired IPS officer, Rakesh Asthana, gave ₹20 crore from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP for election purposes.
Sharing this newspaper clipping, the handle Anita Yadav wrote, “I know it, but it is good that BJP has its stains on it!” (Archived link)
हूं !
— Anita yadav (@Anitahzb) April 2, 2025
पता तो है, पर भाजपा के दाग हैं तो अच्छे हैं! pic.twitter.com/onRNusMFv1
Shivbachan Yadav stated, “One day the government of lies will go. Good days will come for India. The useless ones will go to jail.” (Archived link)
एक दिन झूठ वाली सरकार जाएगी,
— Shivbachan Yadav SP
,हिन्दुस्तान के अच्छे दिन आऐंगे,
,बेकार वालें जेल जाएंगे, @aajtak pic.twitter.com/LTm03nHN5L(@yadav_Shivbacha) April 3, 2025
The newspaper clipping was also shared by other handles like Brijlal Khabri (Archived link) and Reeta Thakur (Archived link).
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Fact Check
In our fact-check research, we searched related keywords on Google and found a Times of India report dated October 30, 2018, at the top of the results.
According to this report, the claim that Rakesh Asthana gave ₹20 crore from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP as an election fund is false.
In the same report, we also found a press note issued by the Surat Police on 27/10/2018, in which this fake news was officially refuted. The press note stated that certain sections of the media had reported an allegation made by a retired sub-inspector of police, claiming that Shri Rakesh Asthana, IPS, who served as the Commissioner of Police in Surat during the period 2011–2016, had transferred ₹20 crore from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP political party. However, after verifying the official records, the Surat Police clarified that this accusation is completely false and baseless. It was further stated in the press note that no amount whatsoever was transferred from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP fund during Shri Asthana’s tenure as Commissioner of Police, Surat.
This rumor had spread in 2018 when Rakesh Asthana was involved in a public feud with then CBI Director Alok Verma, where both had accused each other of corruption. However, the news regarding Rakesh Asthana was later found to be false. The public feud led both the officers getting temporarily removed from their positions by the government.
In conclusion, the newspaper clipping that claims Rakesh Asthana, during his tenure as the Police Commissioner of Surat, gave ₹20 crore from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP for election purposes is false. In 2018, the Surat Police had released a press note labelling this claim to be baseless.
| Claim | Asthana had given ₹20 crore of Police Welfare Fund as election donation to BJP. |
| Claimed by | Social media users |
| Fact Check | The claim that Rakesh Asthana gave ₹20 crore from the Police Welfare Fund to the BJP during his tenure as Surat Police Commissioner is false. |
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