Mumbai, Nov 19 (IANS): Amid raging controversy over cash for vote involving the BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde, the state party chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Tuesday accused the opposition of hatching a conspiracy to target Tawde.

He claimed that the opposition intentionally levelled allegations against Tawde who had gone to Nalasopara to brief the party workers about how to work before the polling, how to increase the polling percentage and how to curb the bogus voting.

“When Tawde was holding a meeting with the party workers, the opposition hatched the conspiracy against him. This was pre-planned. Allegations were levelled against Tawde that he had come with crores of rupees and distributed them in the Nalasopara-Vasai Virar area. Opposition prepared a film and did media management and thereby Vinod Tawde was trapped in it,” claimed Bawankule.

He further said Tawde is the national general secretary and asked “Can he distribute cash?”

He alleged that the opposition is losing the election and it is an attempt to defame BJP and Vinod Tawde, adding that the investigation agency has taken note of the incident and it will hold a probe into the conspiracy.

“We will expose the opposition’s conspiracy. Vinod Tawde is clean and the allegations made against him are false,” said Bawankule.

The BJP legislator Pravin Darekar also refuted the allegations against Tawde saying that the Maha Vikas Aghadi has already lost the game.

“They are expected to lose this election, which is why they are making such absurd allegations against us. What Hitendra Thakur (Bahujan Vikas Aghadi chief) is doing is nothing more than a publicity stunt,” he said.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut Slammed the BJP over the cash-for-vote controversy.

“The BJP's scheme has come to an end. Hitendra Thakur has done what the Election Commission should have done. EC officials search our bags and scrutinise us, yet these individuals from the BJP face no such checks,” he claimed.