Days ahead of assembly elections in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut Tuesday leveled serious allegations against the BJP and its allies, accusing them of distributing cash to influence the voters.
Raut also questioned the impartiality of the Election Commission (EC), claiming that significant amounts of cash have been funneled to the constituencies of CM Eknath Shinde and his deputies — Ajit Pawar and Devendra Fadnavis.
“The Election Commission does its job. You check our cars, planes, and everything. If you carry out this work impartially, we have no problem. But in Maharashtra, where Eknath Shinde, Ajit Pawar, and BJP are contesting the election, 25 crores have already been taken.”
He further alleged that similar incidents had occurred during the Lok Sabha elections, with “20-20 bags” of cash transported via helicopters, which they had documented with video evidence.
Raut also questioned whether the convoys of prominent leaders such as Eknath Shinde, Ajit Pawar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah are subject to the same scrutiny.
“Do you stop the convoys of Eknath Shinde, Ajit Pawar, Narendra Modi, and Amit Shah and check them?” he asked, expressing frustration over what he views as selective enforcement.
Referring to an incident where an officer checking PM Modi’s helicopter in Odisha was reportedly suspended, Raut added, “Does PM Modi not come under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission? Can the PM, HM, and union minister distribute anything among the people? What kind of unbiased justice is this?”
As of November 6, the Election Commission has seized Rs 558 crore worth of cash, freebies, liquor, drugs, and precious metals in the ongoing assembly elections across Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and bypolls in 14 states.
In Maharashtra alone, approximately Rs 280 crore has been seized since the announcement of elections, the poll panel had said in an official release.
Election to the 288-member strong Maharashtra legislative assembly is scheduled for November 20 and the counting of votes will take place on November 23.