Cash-for-vote row: Tawde warns Rahul Gandhi, 2 Congress leaders to apologise or face Rs 100 Cr suit

New Delhi: BJP leader Vinod Tawde has demanded an apology from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, accusing them of making "false and baseless" allegations regarding his involvement in a cash-for-votes incident in Maharashtra. Tawde warned that if the apology is not issued, he would pursue defamation charges against them.

The controversy erupted after the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA), a regional party, accused Tawde of distributing Rs 5 crore to sway voters. Members of the BVA reportedly entered a hotel room in a Mumbai suburb on November 19, where Tawde was present. The incident led to accusations against the BJP leader.

However, Tawde, a former Maharashtra minister and BJP national general secretary, denied any wrongdoing. He asserted that no money was recovered during the probe by the Election Commission and the police. "The Congress only believes in spreading lies, and this incident is proof of the party's low-level politics aimed at damaging me and my party's image," Tawde said.

The Congress, along with party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate, seized upon the allegations to accuse the BJP of using financial power to influence the assembly elections held in Maharashtra on November 20.

The Legal Notice
Tawde's legal notice to Kharge, Gandhi, and Shrinate states that they were aware the allegations were fabricated. "You have deliberately, with the sole intention of damaging the reputation of our client, fabricated the story of money distribution. You have published false, baseless accusations in various media outlets to tarnish his image," the notice read.

The notice further accuses the Congress leaders of rushing to harm Tawde's reputation without verifying the facts. It calls the allegations "false, malicious, and malicious," asserting that Tawde, as a responsible political office-bearer, would never engage in such illegal activities.

The legal notice demands an "unconditional apology" from the Congress leaders within 24 hours of receiving the notice, which was sent on November 21. The apology is to be published in newspapers and on X (formerly Twitter). If the apology is not forthcoming, Tawde threatens to initiate criminal proceedings for defamation under Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, as well as civil proceedings seeking damages of Rs 100 crore.