BJP offering ₹25-50 crores to MLAs to switch sides: Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar

Amid the ongoing political turmoil in Maharashtra, Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar on Friday alleged that MLAs were being offered ₹25 to ₹50 crores to switch sides. 

While keeping firm on his claims, Wadettiwar said that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has contacted with Congress MLAs over the phone as well. 

Earlier on Thursday, along with Wadettiwar, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Jayant Patil also accused BJP of trying to poach their party’s MLAs.

Now, Wadettiwar who is the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the outgoing assembly said that one of the MLAs belonging to Shiv Sena has been offered ₹50 crores to switch sides. 

While talking to the reporters, the senior Congress leader said that their party’s MLAs are being contacted over phone and the BJP is making attempts to lure them away with money.

Our MLAs are being contacted over phone to switch sides and are giving offers of ₹25 to ₹50 crores. We have asked our MLAs to record such calls so that people of Maharashtra can know about this,” said Wadettiwar.

However, BJP has denied the allegations saying that they should apologise to the people of Maharashtra and to their own MLAs for not trusting them. 

Meanwhile, several media reports suggest that Congress MLAs are being shifted to Jaipur. According to the reports, the MLAs were asked to report in Jaipur amid the fear of horse-trading. 

However, Wadettiwar denied such claims saying that some MLAs have gone to relax after the hard work put in the recently concluded assembly elections. 

In Maharashtra, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which won on 105 seats making them the single largest party in the state and its ally Shiv Sena which won on 56 seats have not staked claim to form the government in Maharashtra. 

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The current term for the Devendra Fadnavis government ends on November 9. Earlier, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari met Advocate General (AG) Ashutosh Kumbhakoni at Raj Bhavan to discuss the current political situation in the state.