Nikhil Priyadarshi, the prime accused in the alleged sexual exploitation of a former minister's minor daughter, tried to convince his interrogators on Tuesday that he was innocent and had been falsely implicated in the sex case.

"The girl (whose identity has been withheld) was exerting pressure on me to give her Rs 1 crore and a luxury car, which I rejected outright. This prompted her to lodge a police complaint against me, which finally led to my arrest in Uttarakhand," Nikhil reportedly told the police.

Nikhil, a high-profile businessman and son of a retired IAS officer, was taken on police remand on Tuesday for further interrogation in the case. On Monday, a Schedule Caste/Schedule Tribe special court headed by Akhilanand Dubey had allowed Nikhil's two-day remand.

A senior police officer, who was present during his interrogation, said Nikhil proved smarter than the cops.

"He replied to the queries in such a manner as if nothing has happened. Why not? After all, his brother-in-law is a police officer," the officer told The Telegraph.

Nikhil also tried to convince the police that he was close to many top officers, bureaucrats (read IAS officers) and politicians, who frequently visited his house or automobile showroom near Saguna Mor in Danapur.

He narrated in detail how he came in contact with the girl, who later tried to blackmail him. He, however, kept mum over his alleged attempt to hand over the girl to some of his acquaintances. Nikhil admitted that he had close relations with senior Congress leader Brajesh Pandey.

Brajesh, the former state vice-president of the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee, is at large.

When asked about Brajesh's whereabouts, Nikhil said he was not in touch with him (Brajesh) ever since the matter came to the fore.

The police also tried to elicit information from Nikhil about people who had helped him in his escape from Patna and subsequent stay in Uttarakhand and other states before his arrest from Uttarakhand on March 14.

Sources said he avoided most of the questions on this front.

Nikhil revealed he threw his mobile phones in the hilly areas of Uttarakhand to avoid police action. "I was not using my WhatsApp or Facebook account while being on the run," he disclosed to the interrogators.

Patna senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manu Maharaaj said the officials of the Criminal Investigation Department and the Patna police quizzed Nikhil.

Two separate FIRs have been lodged with the SC/ST police station and the Buddha Colony police station, respectively.

While the case lodged with the SC/ST police station was being monitored by the CID, the other case registered at the Buddha Colony station was under the Patna police. He was taken on police remand on the request of the Buddha Colony police, he added.

Nikhil and his father Krishna Bihari Sinha were produced in a Patna court on March 17, which had remanded the father-son duo to judicial custody for 14 days.

The girl had earlier complained to the police that Nikhil and his associates ran a sex racket, which used to trap unsuspecting girls, including those from well-to-do families.

These girls were sexually exploited by the gang and used for earning illicit money.

Cops suspect that the daughter of an IAS officer had committed suicide after becoming a victim of the racket.

A senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi demanded to know why Brajesh Pandey was still not arrested.

He alleged that the Bihar police were giving Brajesh a long rope and were waiting to get bail from the court so that they don't have to arrest him and interrogate under custody.

Brajesh is reported to be absconding and underground as his lawyers are filing bail petitions in courts concerned. The next hearing on his bail application is scheduled to be held on March 22.

Nikhil was arrested from the northern hill state, two-and-a-half months after giving Bihar police the slip.

Nikhil's father Krishna Bihari Sinha, a retired IAS officer, was also arrested while travelling with his son in an Audi bearing a Haryana registration number.