Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday announced a forensic probe into the audio clips that Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange-Patil released a day earlier alleging a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) conspiracy to influence the political narrative ahead of the 2024 assembly elections.
Fadnavis cited calls for an inquiry and said the forensic investigation will examine whose voices are in the recordings and evaluate the motives behind releasing them after two and a half years. He said the probe will reveal the complete truth.
Fadnavis, who was in Nagpur to vote in the legislative council graduate constituency election, made the announcement when asked about the suspicious timing of the audio clips surfacing after two and a half years. Jarange-Patil presented the clips as evidence and urged top leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Fadnavis, and his deputy Eknath Shinde, to launch a thorough probe. Leaders of his Shiv Sena, including Sanjay Shirsat, Uday Samant, and Dada Bhuse, rejected all allegations as part of a smear campaign.
Jarange-Patil held a press conference in Jalna and played a 31-minute audio recording. Eknath Shinde denied the ₹ 500 crore bribery claims. Earlier reporting noted: Fadnavis orders forensic probe into viral audio clip on ‘ ₹500 cr payment’ to Maratha quota activist Jarange Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Friday that an audio clip released by Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange , which purportedly claims that ₹ 500 crore had been delivered to him through Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde, would be investigated using forensic methods.
He said an impartial inquiry will uncover the absolute truth. He said the recording reveals a long-running political conspiracy spanning the last three years aimed at weakening the Maratha reservation movement and tarnishing his reputation. They said the audio clips and politics around them were being used maliciously to defame Eknath Shinde and demanded an inquiry. Earlier reporting noted: Asked about a delegation of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena office-bearers meeting him over Jarange’s claims, Fadnavis said he had made it clear that any audio clips or conversations that had emerged would be subjected to a thorough forensic examination.
Earlier reporting noted: Fadnavis was speaking to reporters here after casting his vote for the Nagpur Graduates’ seat in the Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC) elections.
