BJP MLA's wife claims husband having affair

A BJP legislator's wife on Friday publicly accused her husband of having an extra-marital affair with a college student and marrying her, in a fresh twist to a case that has seen the MLA appear before the disciplinary committee of the party.

Gagan Bhagat, a BJP legislator from R S Pura constituency in Jammu district, has been accused by his wife Monika Sharma that he is living with the student after marrying her.

The student's father, an ex-serviceman, has also accused Bhagat of abducting his daughter from a college in Punjab.

The student and the legislator have denied the charges, calling them an attempt to defame him.

On Friday, Monika negated Bhagat's claim he was paying her Rs 1 lakh a month and said "not a single penny was given by him despite signing a maintenance form before a judge in April".

She made an appeal to the BJP central leadership and also Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying a "daughter of your own family is seeking justice, not only for myself and my children but also for that girl who had just turned 19".

Sharma said she and the BJP MLA are married for 13 years.

Her accusations come a day after Bhagat appeared before the disciplinary committee of the BJP in Jammu to clarify his position. Bhagat and Sharma appeared before the committee separately amid protests led by the student's grandfather.