Supriya Sule alleges spy cameras used in Pune MLC polls; Fadnavis asks her to send details

Voting for the graduates' and teachers' constituencies is under way in Pune on Friday. Meanwhile, Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) MP Supriya Sule has made a sensational allegation that the BJP is using spy cameras. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has responded.

Fadnavis was speaking to the media in Nagpur on Friday. He said Sule should send him the details of the spy camera and proper action would be taken. He said that if "Supriya didi" sent him what a spycam is and what it looks like, he would understand what kind of pen it is and what exactly is going on.

Sule says voting is being conducted with the help of spycams in Pune and that people are being paid for voting for the BJP. According to her, complaints are emerging that pens fitted with spycams are being used to distribute money in the Pune teachers' and graduates' elections. Voters are saying such a pen is clipped into their pocket so that a video of them voting for the BJP candidate can be recorded. After voting, a fixed sum is paid on showing the video.

Sule called the complaints extremely serious and worrying. She said they put the secrecy of the vote and the freedom of voters at risk. She demanded that the Election Commission and the government take immediate note, conduct a thorough investigation and take strict action against the guilty. She said such acts, which crush the foundation of democracy, must not be tolerated under any circumstances. Elections must be held in a fair, fearless and transparent atmosphere, she said.

On the mood in Nagpur, Fadnavis said enthusiasm for voting was visible there. He appealed to voters to turn out in the largest possible numbers. He made the appeal for all five constituencies: Nagpur graduates, Amravati and Pune teachers, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Pune graduates. According to Fadnavis, the Legislative Council is the house of elders and he is confident the voting will pass off well. He said queues were visible, people were exercising their right to vote, and that is what is expected in a democracy. He said he was sure the result would also be right.

On the occasion, Fadnavis also spoke about the audio clip brought out by Manoj Jarange. He said a delegation of Shiv Sena leaders had met him the previous day. He has assured the Shiv Sena leaders that the audio clip and conversation that have surfaced will be subjected to forensic examination.

Fadnavis asked what the purpose was in bringing this conversation out after two and a half years. He asked who was being targeted and why. According to him, Manoj Jarange has also demanded an inquiry, and the BJP and the Shiv Sena make the same demand. Fadnavis said, "We will bring out the truth of this."