MUMBAI, July 12 -- A day after he admitted to receiving a notice from the Income Tax department regarding a surge in his assets, social justice minister Sanjay Shirsat was seen in a video seated on a bed with what appears to be bundles of currency notes in a bag beside him. The video was shared online by Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Friday. Shirsat, Shiv Sena MLA from Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar and a close aide of deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, has rubbished the claim, saying the bag contained only clothes and sundry items. The video, which quickly went viral online, has evoked a flurry of reactions from the opposition. In his social media post while sharing the video, Raut said, "Prime minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah need to see this exciting video. What's going on in the country? This video of a minister from Maharashtra explains a lot." Raut added that he "felt sorry" for chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. "The second name of helplessness is Fadnavis. How many incidents of embarrassment Fadnavis is going to tolerate silently?" he remarked. Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray took a sharp jab at Shirsat, with a quick-witted comment. He said the purported cash in the bag was part of "50 khoke", referring to his party's allegation that each of the Shiv Sena MLAs who had defected with Eknath Shinde had been given Rs.50 crore to switch loyalties. Thackeray added, "He (Shirsat) just received an IT notice. With this video, at least now CM Fadnavis will take action in the matter." Sena (UBT) group leader in the legislative assembly Bhaskar Jadhav went a step further, alleging that the video of Shirsat could expose a conflict within the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance, of which the Sena is a constituent. "We can see money in the bag. First an inquiry into a hotel deal involving his son, then an IT notice, and now this video with a bag of money. It seems someone in the ruling alliance does not want to see Shirsat as a cabinet minister and so this video was leaked," alleged Jadhav. Shirsat defended himself, saying, "It looks like I came back from travel and my travel bag was lying around with clothes and some other stuff. Even my pet dog is sitting nearby. It doesn't mean I am doing anything wrong." How did a candid video of the minister end up being recorded in his home, in the first place? Shirsat said he could not tell when it was shot. Since he is a leader of the common man, a range of people have access to his home and some "enthusiastic" party workers may have recorded the video, he claimed. This is the third time this week that Shirsat has been embroiled in controversy. On Monday, he was caught on the wrong foot over allegations that the auction of a hotel in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar had been manipulated to favour his son Siddhant. After the opposition levelled the allegation in the legislative assembly, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announced an investigation into the matter. The demand was made by the Sena (UBT). The video with the purported wads of cash is ill-timed for Shirsat, who on Thursday said he had received a notice from the Income Tax department, which has sought a clarification on a significant increase in his assets from 2019 to 2024....