Maharashtra: MVA Files Criminal Plaint Against BJP For Accusing Opposition Of Using Bitcoin To Influence Polls

The BJP accused Maharashtra opposition leaders Nana Patole and Supriya Sule of using Bitcoin transactions to influence elections, prompting Sule's denials and legal action.

New Delhi: After the BJP accused the opposition of tapping into Bitcoin cryptocurrency to influence Maharashtra elections, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) lodged a criminal complaint with the Election Commission and the state police against the former for spreading misinformation to mislead the electorate.

BJP released purported "voice notes(audio recordings)" which they claimed to be conversations between Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole and NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, adding that it posed a serious question on the conduct of polls in a free and fair manner.

BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi claimed the conversations have "unmasked" the opposition and demanded replies from the Congress and Sule.

Ahead of the BJP's scheduled press conference, Sule, a Lok Sabha MP, posted on X about the "familiar tactics of spreading false information to manipulate the righteous voters" before the polling day on Wednesday.

The daughter of NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar said, "We have filed a criminal complaint to the ECI & the Cybercrime Department against the fake allegations made of bitcoin misappropriation. The intent and mala fide actors behind it are amply evident, condemn-worthy that such practices are taking place in a healthy democracy guided by the Constitution of India."

Trivedi who shared audio recordings said the voices and Signal chats belonged to the two opposition leaders and that they had used Bitcoin transactions to fund their poll campaign. Citing the material he released, Trivedi claimed that the MVA has seen the writing on the wall that it is facing defeat in the polls.

"One leader allegedly tells an operator that they will deal with any inquiry once their government is formed," Trivedi said. The saffron party leaders alleged that a former IPS officer was one of the persons who was part of the conversations.

"These are very serious and dangerous comments," he said. He demanded Sule to issue a point-by-point rebuttal. He also wanted her to clarify whether it was her voice in the messages. The BJP leader dismissed her reply as "vague and generic".

"The audio material suggests the involvement of some bigwigs, and the Congress must answer who they were," he said. He sought the opposition leaders to clarify whether they engaged in Bitcoin transactions or not. "If yes, then was the transaction illegal," he asked.

He said a police commissioner had accused an MVA home minister of collecting Rs 100 cr every month when the MVA government was in power.

The BJP leader said the Congress might not have used "digital transactions" for good governance and society's welfare but for its own good and corruption. "They have been unmasked," Trivedi reiterated. In a swipe at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Trivedi wondered if the products for his "Mohabbat ki dukan" are foreign-funded.

Earlier, the opposition accused the BJP national general secretary Vinod Tawde of having indulged in a "cash for votes" scandal citing a video. Tawde and the saffron party have rejected it.

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