Premier Philippe Couillard is being accused of having ties to a disgraced political fundraiser.

Marc-Yvan Coté might have been involved in Couillard's campaign to become leader of the provincial Liberal party. That's a claim which Couillard is vehemently denying.

Coté was a key player during the federal sponsorship scandal, and was ultimately banned from the federal Liberal party.

But he still had ties to provincial politicians, and those ties were examined during the Charboneau Commission into corruption and construction.

Now the Journal de Montreal says it has emails connecting Coté to 24 Liberal delegates to gain support for Couillard's 2013 leadership bid.

Couillard says he knew Coté was toxic, and had no mandate and no authority to work on his behalf.

He said he instructed his team not to let Coté get involved in any fashion.

"We had heard that he wanted to play a role. That is why I decided immediately, even before starting the campaign, to meet him and tell him don't do this, I don't want you to play any role," Couillard said Thursday.

The opposition is calling for a parliamentary hearing into the matter.

Coté was arrested last year and charged with fraud, and breach of trust.

He was arrested at the same time as his former boss Nathalie Normandeau, who was vice-premier under Jean Charest.