"Sheer desperation of BJP in hope of buying elections out": Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], November 20 : Amid the 'cash for vote' allegations around BJP leader Vinod Tawde, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi said on Wednesday that it was an act of sheer desperation by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) so that they could buy the elections out.
Speaking to ANI, Chaturvedi said "The sheer desperation of the BJP has been made obvious since yesterday morning where Vinod Tawade, a senior leader of BJP has been caught distributing money to the people of Maharashtra in the hope of buying the elections out. They know they are headed toward a disastrous election outcome."
Notably, BJP leader Vinod Tawde has been accused of distributing money. Congress leader Supriya Shrinate has claimed that a bag containing Rs 5 crores in cash was found with Tawde at a hotel in Virar East.
Further, Chaturvedi spoke on the "Bitcoin scam" allegations on NCP's Supriya Sule and Congress' Nana Patole and said that the video was a fake AI made in order to mislead the voters of Maharashtra.
"If you look at the audio clip of Supriya Sule, and those who have seen her over years will tell you that neither are the words hers and neither is the accent. Clearly, it's a cheap fake AI trick which has been made to mislead the voters but the voters of Maharashtra are very clear that they are voting for the Maha Vikas Aghadi. They are going to give us a full mandate," she said.
Notably, retired IPS officer Ravindranath Patil from Pune has accused Supriya Sule and Nana Patole of being involved in a cryptocurrency fraud case from 2018, claiming that the funds from this fraud were used for election campaigns.
Earlier today, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader cast her vote for the Maharashtra elections.
Voting for the single-phase Maharashtra assembly elections began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm. Polling is taking place across 288 assembly constituencies.
The primary contest is between the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance and the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
The ruling BJP-led Mahayuti alliance includes the BJP, Shiv Sena, and the Nationalist Congress Party (Ajit Pawar faction), while the opposition MVA comprises the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction).
In the 2019 Maharashtra assembly elections, the BJP won 105 seats, Shiv Sena secured 56, and the Congress won 44. In 2014, the BJP claimed 122 seats, Shiv Sena 63, and the Congress 42.