BJP common secretary Vinod Tawde on Wednesday dismissed allegations of distributing money to affect voters, asserting that he was too skilled to interact in such actions, particularly at a resort owned by political opponents.
The controversy was sparked after Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA) chief Hitendra Thakur charged Tawde with distributing ₹5 crore on the Vivanta Lodge in Virar, 60 km from Mumbai, simply hours earlier than meeting polls. The BJP chief denied all allegations squarely, calling them baseless and politically motivated.
“I Am Not Silly”: Tawde Refutes Claims
Chatting with reporters, Tawde rejected the claims, saying, “The Vivanta Lodge is owned by the Thakurs. I’m not silly to go to their resort and distribute cash there.” He added that he had been in politics for 40 years and was well-versed in election guidelines, together with the silence interval earlier than polls.
His presence on the resort was solely to information celebration staff on voting procedures, mentioned Tawde. “I used to be having an off-the-cuff chat with celebration staff. I used to be not campaigning,” he clarified.
Police Get better ₹9.93 Lakh, Register FIRs
BVA leaders claimed that ₹5 crore was distributed. Alternatively, election officers mentioned that ₹9.93 lakh in money was seized from resort rooms. The police have registered two FIRs in opposition to Tawde, BJP candidate Rajan Naik and others for the alleged money distribution.
One other FIR was lodged in opposition to BJP and BVA functionaries for purportedly holding a press convention in contravention of the election code of conduct. All of the instances had been registered on the Tulinj police station in Palghar district.
MVA Seeks Probe
Opposition leaders of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) have demanded a correct probe by the Election Fee into the alleged violations.
Tawde expressed disbelief that nationwide leaders like Rahul Gandhi and Supriya Sule had been being drawn into the controversy. “The ₹5 crore that Rahul Gandhi and Supriya Sule noticed—please ship it to me. They’ll deposit it into my checking account,” he quipped.
Tawde once more reiterated that no money was discovered on him and accused opposition leaders of resorting to baseless accusations. “BJP persons are now not silly to distribute cash in a resort owned by opposition events. They need to realise this a lot,” he mentioned.
