Mumbai: Chhagan Bhujbal Denies Joining BJP Alliance Due To ED Threat, Cites Constituency Development As Reason

Mumbai: “I joined the Mahayuti government for the development of my constituency, not because of the threat of ED inquiry,” declared NCP leader Bhujbal. This clarification was proffered by him after excerpts from senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai’s book, "2024: The Election That Surprised India went viral in the media and appeared in a Marathi newspaper on Friday morning.

About The Book

In his book, Sardesai mentions that during an interview in 2023, Bhujbal said, “When I emerged safely from the ED inquiry, it was a rebirth for me. My other party colleagues and I, who were summoned in the ED inquiry, heaved a 'sigh of relief’ after joining the Mahayuti with Ajit Pawar.”

The book states NCP leaders, like Ajit Pawar, Sunetra Pawar, Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare, Hasan Mushrif, Anil Deshmukh, and Nawab Malik, had to face ED probes.

Chhagan Bhujbal Issues Clarification

“The ED had arrested Anil Deshmukh and me. At that time, we all thought, we should go with BJP or Modi, or we won't be spared. We put the issue before Sharad Pawar. He understood the issue but was not ready to shake hands with the BJP. Eventually, we decided to join the BJP alliance with Ajit Pawar” Bhujbal expressed that by going with the BJP, everyone was spared ED investigation. This was the news that went viral in the media, evoking the clarification from Chhagan Bhujbal.

“I don’t know why such news is being printed at election time. I have not read the book; however, I will read it and discuss it with my lawyer. I will take action on the erroneous stuff written about me. But at this moment, my focus is on the election campaign. Some people want to distract me but I will remain focussed on the campaign.”

An Old Allegation

Bhujbal said the allegation of joining the BJP because of the threat of an ED inquiry was old. “I received a clean chit in the Maharashtra Sadan scam, when I was part of the MVA government. At that time, I had distributed sweets to Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray. 54 MLAs had signed up to join the Mahayuti but not all of these MLAs faced the prospect of an ED inquiry. But they had come with us for the development of their constituencies,” Bhujbal said.

NCP SP MP Supriya Sule said, “Bhujbal should say something about it. I have been raising the issue in Parliament too - that ED and IT are being used to harass only opposition leaders.”