As Maharashtra continues to be engulfed by the deadly Wuhan coronavirus pandemic, the sensational Antilia Bomb scare case and the subsequent mysterious death of Mansukh Hiren, and the Sachin Vaze fallout, instead of fixing the mess that the state finds itself in, the constituents of the Maha Vikas Aghadi seem to be involved in a fierce competition to bite each other’s hand. After Shiv Sena motormouth Sanjay Raut gave his unwarranted comments on the next UPA Chief, the Indian National Congress has advised Raut to exercise caution before making any comments.
Anyone following Maharashtra’s politics in the recent months will tell you that Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut of late has been acting as a spokesperson of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar – a fact seconded by Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole.
After yet again, stating that he wants Sharad Pawar to take over as the Chairperson of the UPA from Sonia Gandhi, Sanjay Raut has most certainly angered the grand old party Congress. The INC seemingly has had it enough with Raut who has made his career by giving juicy media bytes and writing illogical editorials in the Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamana.
Maharashtra Revenue Minister and Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat reiterated that Sonia Gandhi “remain head of the UPA for a long time”. Responding to Raut’s statement on the next UPA Chairperson, Thorat said, “Raut is a senior leader. He should be careful before making any comments.”
State Congress President Nana Patole had recently asked Raut if he was the spokesperson for Pawar. He was in a particularly combative mood as he hit out at Raut and Shiv Sena. Showing the Sena its rightful place, Patole drove down the fact that the MVA government exists because of the support of Congress and the Sena is not a part of the UPA.
“Regarding the consistent stance taken by Sanjay Raut on our leader Sonia Gandhi, first of all- Shiv Sena is not a part of UPA. We have often told them about this. Despite this, criticising our leaders time and again is not appropriate. That’s why we told them that the government exists because of us. We are not the government but the government exists because of us. They should stop criticising our leaders,” remarked Patole.
Further taking a dig at Raut, Patole added, “We have the stance that he is the spokesperson of Sharad Pawar. Yesterday, Sanjay Raut himself tweeted that there was no meeting between Sharad Pawar and Amit Shah. He put forth his position like an NCP spokesperson. What we said has become clear.”
Recently, facing the heat over the fallout on Sachin Vaze and the explosive letter to Uddhav Thackeray by former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh where he alleged extortion racket to the tune of hundreds of crores, Raut attempted to shift goalposts in a Saamana editorial. The Rajya Sabha MP claimed that Anil Deshmukh got the post of Home Minister by “accident” and lambasted Deshmukh for his handling of the important ministry. This led to Deputy CM and senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar cautioning Raut from playing spoilsport.
With Congress hitting back at Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut to remain silent when it comes to the UPA, the cracks seem rapidly widening amidst the Maha Vikas Aghadi and it remains to be seen for how long can the unholy alliance cling on to power.