Here’s why Kolhapur royal decided not to join Shiv Sena for another RS term?
After his RS term ended last month, Sambhajiraje had announced to contest RS polls as an independent, while seeking support from all political parties
PUNE Following the suspense for a week, Chhatrapati Sambhaji, a descendant of Shivaji Maharaj, has apparently declined the offer to join Shiv Sena for a Rajya Sabha (RS) seat.
Sambhajiraje, a member of the Kolhapur royal family and descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was earlier a president-nominated member of the upper house of Parliament. In 2009, he had unsuccessfully contested Lok Sabha polls from Kolhapur on Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) ticket.
After his RS term ended last month, Sambhajiraje had announced to contest RS polls as an independent, while seeking support from all political parties.
The polls for Rajya Sabha’s six seats from Maharashtra are scheduled on June 10. The BJP can win two seats with the number of MLAs it has, while the ruling allies Shiv Sena, Congress and NCP in Maharashtra can win a seat each. The contest will, therefore, be for the sixth seat for which the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is relatively in a better position considering the support of independent MLAs it has.
“Going with Sena would have sent a wrong signal for Sambhajiraje. At the same time, several members of the community were unhappy when Sambhajiraje, a descendent of Shivaji Maharaj, appeared for seeking support from outfits,” said a political observer.
After Sambhajiraje’s appeal to back him, Shiv Sena had asked him to join the party first, an offer he apparently did not accept considering the opposition from several Maratha outfits.
A key figure in Maratha reservation movement, Chhatrapati Shivaji’s descendent received major support few months ago when he launched an attack against state government. During his movement, several Maratha outfits also joined him while criticising the government after it could not safeguard reservation to the community as SC accepted anti-quota petition.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said, “Sena will not support any independent for the Rajya Sabha membership. The party will prefer its own members.”