The environment minister of Mauritius was forced to resign on Wednesday due to corruption allegations, saying he was the victim of a conspiracy to bring down the government.

Raj Dayal was asked to resign by Prime Minister Anerood Jugnauth after an audio recording, aired on a private radio station, appeared to show him asking for money from a businessman who was seeking to develop a piece of land.

‘It’s a conspiracy against me to destabilise the government. I have decided to step down. The truth will prevail,’ Dayal told reporters.

The prime minister’s office said Dayal had been asked to step down while an inquiry is conducted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption.

Graft scandals are relatively rare in Mauritius, an Indian Ocean island state some 2,000 km (1,200 miles) off the southeast coast of Africa.