Rs 500 Crore Audio Row: BJP-Shinde Sena Ties Under Strain

Mumbai: A purported audio clip alleging a Rs 500-crore payment to Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange has opened a fresh rift inside Maharashtra’s ruling Mahayuti alliance. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered a forensic probe, while a Shiv Sena leader accuses BJP insiders of plotting against Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The clip’s authenticity has not been established, and the allegations remain unproven.

How the row began

On Thursday, Jarange played an audio clip at a press conference in Jalna. It purportedly claims that Rs 500 crore was delivered to him through Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde, the Deputy CM’s son. Jarange alleged the money was meant to silence him and crush the Maratha reservation agitation. By one account, he released the recording after Eknath Shinde challenged him to prove allegations that Shinde had taken Rs 500 crore from the BJP and routed it through his son.

Fadnavis orders a probe.

On Friday in Nagpur, Fadnavis said the clip would be examined using forensic methods. Jarange has asked for an impartial Special Investigation Team (SIT) inquiry instead.

The Sena’s counter-allegation

Shiv Sena leader and former minister Ramdas Kadam turned the focus on the BJP. He accused Jarange of colluding with the BJP to politically “finish off” a Maratha leader, meaning Shinde. Kadam said BJP MLC Pravin Darekar, a close aide of Fadnavis, was named in the clip, and asked who in the BJP was trying to finish Shinde. He also said he had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Fadnavis.

Kadam also targeted BJP MLA Prasad Lad over his ties with Jarange. Lad denied the charge and said Kadam should have spoken to Fadnavis and Shinde before making claims. Jarange hit back, questioning how Kadam knew the clip’s exact date and calling him a liability for Shinde.

Allies and opposition weigh in.

Shiv Sena leader Anand Dubey defended Shinde. Congress leader Husain Dalwai demanded an investigation and questioned the scale of the alleged sum. On Saturday, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut claimed a BJP MLC had leaked the clip, calling it a product of cut-throat competition inside the BJP. He said Fadnavis should first register a case and then order a forensic examination. A BJP leader, for his part, has accused Raut of creating an AI-generated clip, which Raut has not accepted.

Why it matters

The BJP, Shinde’s Sena and the NCP govern together. Fadnavis has been Chief Minister since December 2024, and Shinde, who led the state from 2022 to 2024, is his deputy. The episode shows how fragile trust is between the two bigger partners. For now, the questions are practical ones: whether the clip is genuine, who recorded and released it, and what the forensic probe finds.