The Shiv Sena Monday accused BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis of “trapping” former MP Sambhajiraje, who withdrew from the Rajya Sabha poll race after the Sena declined to back his candidature as an Independent, in a bid to discredit the party.
The editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana said the issue of Sambhajiraje’s nomination being highlighted by the BJP is “dirty politics”. “Fadnavis jumped into the Sambhaji Chhatrapati case but it became clear that his jump failed,” it said.
It further said the BJP is used to giving its word and breaking it when the time comes. “In 2014 and 2019, the game of dishonouring the given word was played in Maharashtra. Fadnavis, who said ‘I will come again’ in 2019, never came back. He has not been able to solve their own dilemma since then,” the editorial stated.
“Therefore, it was BJP that caught Sambhajiraje, who was trying to fight for the sixth seat, in a trap. This is their old business. MNS chief Raj Thackeray was cornered by keeping the loudspeaker on his shoulder. Later, by encouraging his visit to Ayodhya, he was again opposed by their own MP, which created a big dilemma for him. This is their political pattern,” it added.
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PremiumMeanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said BJP used Sambhajiraje as a shield to field its own candidate. “It is now clear how the BJP was trying to deceive Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati to field its own candidate. They want to do horse trading. But for this, an attempt was made to make a shield out of Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati,” Raut said.
