Accusing the BJP of luring leaders of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) to its side in a bid to win the Gujarat election, Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said on Thursday the saffron party was facing repeated allegations of bribery.
Reiterating the party’s demand of an FIR against BJP chief Amit Shah and Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Mr. Singhvi wondered whether the CBI would act against the “brazen display of money and power”in Gujarat.
In a poser to the Election Commission, he asked why there were complaints that malfunctioning voting machines were casting votes only for the BJP and no other party, as in the recent news regarding the Uttar Pradesh urban body polls.
“Staring at defeat in Gujarat and realising how devastating the anger of the youth of Gujarat will be for them, the BJP is shamelessly indulging in acts of bribery, horse-trading, misuse of money and muscle power, coercion and threats,” Mr. Singhvi alleged.
“The BJP has become a sinking ship in Gujarat and is desperately clutching at straws to stay afloat. Revelations by Shri Hardik Patel reinforce our charge that Shri Narendra Modi and Shri Amit Shah are facing a complete whitewash in Gujarat.”
“It is in the public domain, how the BJP is luring the leaders of PAAS one by one – by using unscrupulous means of bribe, threats, and coercion. The latest saga is an alleged offer of a whopping ₹1200 cr. which Shri Hardik Patel disclosed in his press meet on Wednesday.”
Mr. Singhvi also recalled earlier charges against the BJP.
“Earlier, we had witnessed how the sensational revelations by the Mehsana convener of PAAS, Shri Narendra Patel, which had put the already plunging credibility of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi down in the pits. Another Patidar leader Nikhil Sawani who had joined the BJP had made similar revelations and resigned thereafter,” he said.
“As a proof of this bribery, the Congress party had then released the audio clip of the conversation between Shri Narendra Patel and Shri Varun Patel, who had offered him ₹ 1 crore as bribe on behalf of the BJP.”
He also recalled how just before the Gujarat Rajya Sabha polls, “the BJP had blatantly and shamelessly used money and the state machinery to lure at least 14 Congress MLAs.”
