Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP and spokesperson Sanjay Raut on Sunday called on Shahu Chhatrapati, the head of the erstwhile royal family of Kolhapur. The meeting came a day after the 74-year-old head of the royal family said that his son Sambhajiraje might have been coerced by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to contest as an Independent. Fadnavis, meanwhile, said Shahu Chhatrapati was given the wrong information and was speaking as per a script given to him.
The election to the sixth seat of Rajya Sabha has turned into a major political drama with Sambhajiraje seeking the support of all political parties to get elected as an Independent.
The Sena, which had the seat, did not want to back an Independent candidate and offered Sambhajiraje to join the Sena to get elected to the Upper House of the Parliament, which he declined.
Maratha outfits dubbed Sena’s condition as unfortunate, while Sambhajiraje alleged that chief minister Uddhav Thackeray did not keep his word.
The meeting between Raut and Shahu Chhatrapati is being viewed as Sena’s attempt to put the issue to rest as it does not want to be on the wrong side of the politically significant Maratha community.
Thackeray also spoke to Shahu Maharaj over the phone and expressed his wish to visit the New Palace in Kolhapur soon.
Raut who was in Kolhapur since Friday as part of Sena’s Shiv Sampark Abhiyan visited Shahu Chhatrapati on Sunday afternoon. “I have come to Kolhapur after many years; Uddhav ji asked me to take the blessings of Maharaj. The Thackeray family and the royal family of Kolhapur have had ties for decades now. Uddhav ji also spoke to Shahu Chhatrapati over the phone, and said that he would soon come to Kolhapur; he sought his blessing in the social developments in the state,” he said.
“There was no political discussion about the fifth or sixth seat [of Rajya Sabha]. We wanted to take his blessings as he is the descendant of Shivaji Maharaj and Shahu Maharaj,” he added
After meeting Raut, Shahu Chhatrapati, said, “They always respect me, and the issue (referring to RS nomination) has ended.”
A senior Sena functionary said that the party leadership was worried that the BJP would use the Rajya Sabha nomination of Sambhajiraje to target the party and therefore wanted to nip the issue in the bud. “The drama would have played out more had Shahu Maharaj not made the statement [on Saturday]. The BJP would have used the statement [by Sambhajiraje] about going back on the word. Uddhavji did not want the perception to be created especially in the Maratha community,” the functionary said, requesting anonymity.
In a veiled attack, the leader of the opposition Fadnavis targeted Sena and Nationalist Congress Party, saying Shahu Maharaj was provided with a “script” and that the rising leadership of Sambhajiraje would have been a threat to a prominent party which holds sway in Western Maharashtra region.
“I am disappointed that people gave wrong information to honourable Maharaj. They do not realise that by giving such statement to Maharaj they are proving Sambhajiraje wrong, and are showing that there are differences between the two,” Fadnavis said without naming Shiv Sena.
Reacting to the statement, Raut said the Chhatrapati should not be insulted. “Who can provide wrong information to Chhatrapati? Do not insult Chhatrapati in this manner,” he said outside the New Palace in Kolhapur.
In a veiled attack on NCP, Fadnavis said the Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati’s leadership was growing in Maharashtra for the last six years.
“The leadership of Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati was getting stronger; the Maratha community, as well as the Bahujan community, have affection for him. Such strong leadership in western Maharashtra is not a threat to BJP. Anybody with the basic understanding of politics understands it is a threat to whom,” the former CM said.
He, however, declined to comment on Shahu Maharaj’s statement that the BJP leader might have coerced Sambhajiraje into his initial decision of contesting as an Independent candidate. “I do not wish to comment on the opinion that he put out as he is Chhatrapati, and we respect him. The statement made by Sambhajiraje is enough.”
