Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Nagpur, Aug 9: NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has claimed that ahead of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, he was approached by two individuals who allegedly offered to secure victory in 160 out of 288 seats through vote manipulation. Pawar said he rejected the offer outright and chose instead to seek a mandate directly from the public.

At a press conference in Nagpur, Pawar said,

“I was surprised. I ignored those two people. I didn’t doubt the Election Commission at the time, but I did arrange a meeting for them with Rahul Gandhi. After hearing them out, we both agreed this was not our path.”

Pawar shared the stage with senior leaders including Shashikant Shinde, Anil Deshmukh, Jitendra Awhad, and Rohit Pawar. Reiterating his stance, he said that instead of entertaining such proposals, he and the Congress leader decided to rely on people’s trust through democratic means.

The veteran leader backed Rahul Gandhi’s recent allegations about electoral malpractice and urged a thorough investigation.

“We want an answer from the Election Commission, not the BJP,” Pawar said.

Supporting the account, Jitendra Awhad confirmed that two people had made an offer to manipulate the outcome in 160 constituencies but were turned away by Pawar, who dismissed it as implausible and unethical.

However, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis dismissed the allegations, calling them baseless and politically timed.

“Why did Pawar Saheb suddenly remember all this now, and that too only after meeting Rahul Gandhi? Is this another one of those imaginary stories?” Fadnavis said, adding that elections in India are held in a free and fair manner.

Fadnavis also criticised the opposition for making serious public allegations about EVM tampering and election fraud, but failing to provide legal backing.

“They say they’ve sworn an oath in Parliament. But does that work in court? When the Election Commission calls them, they don’t appear or submit affidavits. Because they know that if caught lying, they could face criminal action,” he said.

The war of words comes at a time when opposition leaders are stepping up their scrutiny of the electoral process, with growing calls for transparency and institutional accountability.