MUMBAI, May 23 -- The recovery of a stash of cash from a government guest house at Dhule in north Maharashtra triggered a massive political row and blame game on Thursday, prompting a series of actions including chief minister Devendra Fadnavis ordering probe by a special investigation team (SIT) and state legislative council chairperson Ram Shinde suspending a legislature officer. The controversy erupted after opposition Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders in Dhule, led by party leader Anil Gote (a former MLA with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) till 2019), found Rs.1.8 crore in the guest house's room number 102 on Wednesday. They alleged that the money was collected by contractors who have undertaken government projects to bribe members of the state legislature's estimate committee, whose chairperson is ruling Shiv Sena legislator Arjun Khotkar. Their claim was also endorsed by Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut. Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders further alleged that the room was booked in the name of Khotkar's personal assistant Kishor Patil. Khotkar and members of the committee, who were in Dhule to follow-up on government projects' spending, denied any connection with the cash. "Soon after we reached the guest house, the people who were residing there ran away after locking the room. I sat outside the room, accompanied by my party leaders, as we had information that there was cash inside amounting to Rs.5 crore. Police eventually arrived at around midnight and found that there was cash amounting to Rs.1.8 crore," Gote alleged. On Thursday morning, Raut claimed that police did not turn up for hours. "Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis should order inquiry into the matter, and the anti-corruption bureau should also look into it," he said. The CM on Thursday ordered an SIT probe in the allegations. "The whole truth must come out. The episode puts a question mark on a legislature's committee which cannot be tolerated. The honour and dignity of the state legislature has to be upheld. So, an SIT will be formed to investigate the money trail," Fadnavis said, adding he would "request the speaker of the assembly to conduct a probe through Ethics Committee of the state legislature". Khotkar, however, denied allegations as "baseless". "We have nothing to do with the money seized from the guest house. We have not visited the guest house. It is most likely that someone planted the money there to defame us," Khotkar told HT. Later in the day, legislative council chairperson Ram Shinde suspended Patil, section officer in the state legislature, as the room was booked in his name. Patil was accompanying Khotkar. "Officer Kishore Patil has been suspended and a committee will be formed to investigate the case in which crores of rupees were recovered from room 102," Shinde said in a statement. Opposition Congress said the incident has exposed the "corruption" of the Mahayuti government. "There is no need for the chief minister to set up a special investigation team in the matter. It is an open and shut case. Money was recovered from the room of the PA of committee chairperson Arjun Khotkar. Where is the need for a probe? Khotkar, his PA and the person who sent the cash needs to be taken into custody," Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal told reporters. Meanwhile, Dhule police said an investigation in the matter was on. "We have informed the income tax department about the seized cash. Police have also started inquiry into the matter and further action will be taken as per the investigation," Dhule additional superintendent of police (ASP) Kishor Kale said....