NCP(SP) urged the Maharashtra Speaker to probe BJP MLA Tanaji Mutkule’s claim that MLA Santosh Bangar took ₹50 crore to defect during the 2022 Shiv Sena split.
The party said the allegation confirms public suspicion of “cash-for-defection” and undermines the legitimacy of the Mahayuti government.
Mutkule and Bangar traded accusations, further intensifying the political row ahead of local body polls.
NCP(SP) Seeks Probe Into Claim of ₹50 Cr MLA Defection Deal
Party demands Speaker investigate BJP MLA’s allegation that a Shiv Sena legislator was paid to switch sides in 2022.
Summary
In response to BJP MLA Tanaji Mutkule's allegation that MLA Santosh Bangar received Rs 50 crore to defect from the Uddhav Thackeray camp to the Eknath Shinde-led party during the Shiv Sena split in 2022, the NCP (SP) on Friday urged that the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker launch an investigation.
In a statement, NCP (SP) spokesperson Mahesh Tapase said the allegation made by a ruling alliance MLA had "moved the issue of defection payouts from public suspicion to documented political reality".
"For months, people have been saying 'panas khoke ekdum ok'. Now a ruling MLA himself has confirmed what citizens have been alleging," Tapase pointed out.
Calling Mutkule's statement an indictment of the entire Mahayuti government, Tapase alleged the present dispensation was "built on financial transactions that bought elected representatives".
"This is not a mere allegation but a brazen admission from within the ruling alliance. If Rs 50 crore was paid to engineer the defection of an MLA, the legitimacy of the entire regime stands compromised," he claimed.
Tapase questioned whether the Assembly Speaker would take cognisance of the issue.
"When ruling party members accuse each other of accepting Rs 50 crore to change sides, will the Speaker act? This is a colossal breakdown of democratic integrity," he said.
The NCP (SP) spokesperson further alleged that the Mahayuti government, formed after splits in both the Shiv Sena and the NCP, was focused solely on "power acquisition through corruption".
"Governance has collapsed. The only agenda of this government is managing defections, internal feuds, and patronage networks," he added.
In the December 2 municipal council elections, Tapase called for voters to "reject the morally compromised government" and back Mahavikas Aghadi candidates.
He claimed that Maharashtra should have a government dedicated to development rather than one based on agreements worth Rs 50 crore.
Bangar, a Shiv Sena MLA from the Hingoli district's Kalamnuri seat, allegedly got Rs 50 crore to change allegiance in 2022, according to Mutkule, who represents the Hingoli assembly seat. In June of that year, Eknath Shinde's uprising caused the Shiv Sena, formed by Bal Thackeray, to disband.
"There are talks that he accepted Rs 50 crore to shift loyalty. I am sure these talks must be true because he does not take up any work without money," Mutkule had alleged.
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Bangar retaliated by saying that Mutkule was accused of sexual harassment, but he forced his driver to acknowledge the accusations and to save himself.
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