The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday cried foul after the Mumbai police registered an FIR against the leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council, Pravin Darekar. The BJP leader has been booked for cheating, criminal breach of trust and criminal conspiracy. The FIR, based on a complaint filed by Aam Aadmi party functionary Dhananjay Shinde, claimed that Darekar had falsely claimed he was a labourer to contest election for the director’s post at Mumbai Co-operative Bank .

BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said that there is a conspiracy to frame Darekar by the Maha Vikas Aghadi government to silence them. “I had said in the state assembly on Monday itself that Sanjay Pandey has been made the Mumbai Police Commissioner to frame BJP leaders, including Darekar,” said Fadnavis.

He added, “If the Mumbai police case against Darekar has any substance then several of the NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena leaders who are office bearers of co-operative institutions and have contested elections from labour organisations will also have to be booked.”

“We have been told by MVA leaders that the chief minister’s office has given a list of six to seven names of BJP leaders to be framed by police and Darekar’s name was on the top of the list. However, we want to tell the government that we are not afraid of this and we would fight it out,”said Fadnavis.

ET had reported earlier that there was pressure on the MVA government to take ‘action’ against BJP leaders after several MVA leaders, including Sanjay Raut, Anil Deshmukh and Nawab Malik, were booked by various central probe agancies. Sena MP Sanjay Raut had even warned that three BJP leaders would soon end up in jail.

The state poloice has already filed cases against Union minister Narayan Rane and his MLA son Nitesh for claiming that celebrity manager Disha Salian was raped and killed. The Sena-controlled Mumbai Municipal Corporation has also sent notices to Rane to demolish ‘unauthorised’ constructions at his family bungalow within 15 days.