Uddhav Thackeray invites Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati to join Sena for RS seat

Mumbai: Chief minister and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday sent a delegation inviting Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati to formally join Sena

Mumbai: Chief minister and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday sent a delegation inviting Sambhajiraje Chhatrapati to formally join Sena. However, party insiders said that Sambhajiraje is not inclined to join any party fold, but wants endorsement from Sena and the other two ruling parties to be elected to Rajya Sabha on June 10.

Mumbai, India - February 26, 2022: Rajya Sabha MP Chhatrapati Sambhajiraje Bhosale sits on a hunger strike demanding the long pending reservation to Maratha community, at Azad Maidan, in Mumbai, India, on Saturday, February 26, 2022. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT PHOTO)

Sena minister Uday Samant, MP Anil Desai, and Thackeray’s close aide Milind Narvekar met Chhatrapati at a hotel in south Mumbai on Sunday afternoon with Thackeray’s invitation. “Uddhav ji asked us to extend the invitation, but he is not open to joining Shiv Sena. He, however, wants the party to endorse him for the Rajya Sabha seat,” a senior Sena functionary said.

The party leader informed that Sambhajiraje was elected from the president’s quota, and the name was suggested by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, it is a party seat now and it has to be contested on the party ticket. He may formally write to Uddhav ji seeking assistance.

Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena MP and a chief spokesperson said that no decision has been made with regard to Chhatrapati Sambhaji’s candidature. “There is no decision about a Shiv Sena endorsed candidate. Our stand is firm, the second candidate will be from the Shiv Sena,” said Raut.

The election to the six Rajya Sabha seats is slated to be held by members of the legislative assembly on June 10. Based on the strength in the lower house, BJP could win two seats, while three ruling parties- Sena, Congress, and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) - can win one seat each. The Sena has announced to field an additional candidate with the help of additional votes the three ruling parties have. Sambhajiraje, who was appointed to RS from the president quota in 2016 has vowed to get elected as an independent without associating with any political party.

Meanwhile, the Sena is also looking at probable candidates for the seat including former Lok Sabha MP Chandrakant Khaire. Besides Khaire, former MP Anandrao Adsul, former union minister Anant Geete, and former Lok Sabha MP Shivajirao Adhalrao Patil are in the zone of consideration for the seat. However, Khaire is one of the frontrunners to get the seat if Sambhajiraje does not join the Sena.

Sena is looking at Khaire as it would be a tactical move to take on the political opponents on issues around Hindutva. At the national level, the BJP is raking communal issues. In Maharashtra, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) have raked up the Aurangzeb’s tomb issue to corner the Sena on Hindutva.

Geete is unlikely to get the opportunity as he made comments against NCP chief Sharad Pawar last year, while Adsul is facing an investigation from the central agencies. “Khaire is known to be an aggressive leader and has Hindutva credentials. He participated in the Babri demolition and Kar Seva in 1992,” said another Sena functionary.