BJP leader Vinod Tawde is accused of distributing money to voters in a constituency in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, a day before voting. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national general secretary Vinod Tawde on Friday issued a defamation notice to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate for their allegations of him distributing money to voters.
Tawde’s lawyer sent a legal notice asking the three Congress leader to apologise or they would be sued for ₹100 crore. Tawde has sought their unconditional apology, adding he will file criminal and civil cases against them for defaming him in absence of apology.
Rahul Gandhi had hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the controversy, saying,”Modiji, from whose SAFE did these 5 crores come? Who looted the public’s money and sent you in the tempo?” Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge too attacked PM Modi over the issue, saying while the prime minister promises to keep Maharashtra “SAFE” with money and muscle power, party leader is being “caught red-handed” with ₹5 crores cash.
Cash-for-votes row
The cash-for-votes row erupted a day before 288 constituencies in Maharashtra voted to elect its new government. On November 19, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi leader Hitendra Thakur alleged that senior BJP leader Vinod Tawde distributed money to voters in a constituency in Palghar district. A purported video of a face-off between Tawde and BVA leaders and workers has surfaced on social media.
“Some BJP leaders informed me that BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde is coming to Virar to disburse ₹5 crore to influence voters. I thought a national leader like him would not stoop to such a trivial task. But I saw him here. I urge the Election Commission to take action against him and the BJP,” Thakur. The BVA legislator alleged the hotel Tawde was staying had shut CCTV recording. “The hotel administration seems to be in cahoots with Tawde and the BJP. They only activated their CCTV after we requested it. Tawde was distributing money to manipulate voters,” he said.
Vinod Tawde rejected allegations
Rejecting bribe charges against him, Vinod Tawde said,”A meeting of MLAs of Nalasopara was underway. I went there to tell them about the Model Code of Conduct for the day of voting, how will voting machines be sealed and how to go about if an objection has to be made.”
“The workers of the party (Bahujan Vikas Aghadi), Appa Thakur and Kshitij thought that we were distributing money. Let the Election Commission and Police inquire, let them get CCTV footage. I have been in the party for 40 years. Appa Thakur and Kshitij know me, and the entire party knows me. Still, I believe that the Election Commission should conduct an impartial investigation,” Tawde as saying.
