Daughter-in-law's accusations come back to haunt BJP MP Ramdas Tadas

Shiv Sena leader accuses BJP candidate Ramdas Tadas of abandoning daughter-in-law, prompting her to contest election for justice.

NAGPUR: In a significant embarrassment for the BJP and its Wardha candidate Ramdas Tadas, Shiv Sena (UBT) deputy leader Sushma Andhare on Thursday accused him of abandoning his daughter-in-law Pooja and her baby, prompting Pooja to contest the election against Tadas to seek justice from voters.

Sushma Andhare and Pooja

Speaking to the media, Andhare alleged that Pooja was coerced into marriage to protect her husband Pankaj Tadas from a rape accusation nearly three years ago. A harrowing ordeal of abuse, physical violence and neglect, including being deprived of food on multiple occasions, allegedly ensued before Pooja was abandoned with her infant. Despite Pankaj’s disavowal of his son and wife, Pooja remains adamant about getting justice and support from her father-in-law.

Andhare plans to meet PM Narendra Modi during his visit to Wardha on April 20 for a rally. “Is Pooja not a member of the ‘Modi family’?” the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader asked in a jibe at the recent ‘Modi ka parivar’ claim made by BJP leaders. “Why then is she being denied support?” Charging the government with turning a blind eye to the injustices faced by Pooja at the hands of Ramdas Tadas and his family, Andhare criticised its failure to address such issues despite grandiloquent promises.

However, Tadas, aiming for a third consecutive victory in the Lok Sabha polls, refuted all allegations, claiming no association with his son or daughter-in-law. He dismissed the accusations as a ploy by opposition parties to tarnish his image, emphasising that the issue of his son’s marriage was old and being exploited for electoral purposes.

His son Pankaj said the issue was before the court and refused to comment further. “I will approach the court against Andhare as she commented on a sub-judice matter,” he said.

Pooja, who took her 17-month-old son along to file her nomination last week, said, “I want justice for my son and other women who suffer like me. I have suffered physically and mentally because of my in-laws. My fight is for the rights of every woman who suffers because of her in-laws.”